Contents

The immediate background to the introduction of the Prairial Law was the attempted assassinations of Collot d'Herbois on 23 May and of Robespierre on 25 May. Introducing the degree at the Convention, Couthon who had drafted it, argued that political crimes were far worse than common crimes because in the latter 'only individuals are wounded' where as in the former 'the existence of free society is threatened'. Under these circumstances, 'indulgence is an atrocity... clemency is parricide.'.[1] The law was an extension of the centralisation and organisation of the Terror, following the decrees of 16 April and 8 May which had suspended the revolutionary court in the provinces and brought all political cases for trial in the capital,[2] the result of these laws was that by June 1794 Paris was full of suspects awaiting trial. On 29 April it was reported that the forty prisons of Paris contained 6,921 prisoners; by 11 June this number had increased to 7,321 and by 28 July to 7,800.[3]

'No Revolutionary Tribunal could work fast enough to prevent the ship of state sinking under such a sea of crime. What was to be done? Precedents had been created at Lyon, Marseille and elsewhere.... at Orange in particular, there had been set up, by decree of the Convention, a Commission of Five, which, by dispensing with the usual formalities of counsel and witness, had succeeded in condemning to death, within two months, 332 out of the 591 persons brought before it'.[3]

The law was also prompted by the growing sense, shared by Robespierre, Couthon, Saint-Just and others that members of the Convention who had supported Danton were politically unreliable and needed to be brought swiftly to justice without a full debate by the Convention itself, they considered Amar, for example, to be suspect.[4]

i. The law extended the reach of the Revolutionary Tribunal, which henceforth could hear cases for 'slandering patriotism', 'seeking to inspire discouragement', 'spreading false news' and 'depraving morals, corrupting the public conscience and impairing the purity and energy of the revolutionary government'.[5]

ii. It placed an active obligation on all citizens to denounce and bring to justice those suspected - 'Every citizen is empowered to seize conspirators and counterrevolutionaries, and to bring them before the magistrates, he is required to denounce them as soon as he knows of them.' As Couthon explained to the Convention, 'For a citizen to become suspect it is sufficient that rumour accuses him'.[6]

iii. It limited trials in the Revolutionary Tribunal to three days.[7]

iv. It prevented the Revolutionary Tribunal both from calling witnesses, or from allowing defence counsel to the accused. Juries were to come to judgement entirely on the basis of the accusation and the accused's own defence[5]

v. It required the Tribunal to come to one of only two possible verdicts - acquittal or death.[5]

vi. The law cancelled all previous legislation on the same subject. Without being explicit, this removed the immunity of members of the Convention which up till then had protected them from summary arrest and required that the Convention itself vote to send any of its members to trial.[8]

The Prairial Law had an immediate impact on the tempo of executions under the Terror, from an average of five executions a day in Germinal, the rate rose to seventeen in Prairial and twenty-six in Messidor.[9] The law thus inaugurated the period known as "'The Great Terror".

The proposals were met with dismay when they were presented to the Convention, the Committee of Public Safety had not reviewed the text before it was presented, although it was presented in the name of the Committee itself. The Committee of General Security had not even been informed that the law was being drafted.[10]

Some of the deputies were uneasy, in particular, about the removal of their immunity and asked for the debate to be adjourned so the clauses could be examined. Robespierre refused and demanded immediate discussion, at his insistence the entire decree was voted on, clause by clause. It passed,[4] the next day, 11 June, when Robespierre was absent, Bourdon de l'Oise and Merlin de Douai put forward an amendment proclaiming the inalienable right of the Convention to impeach its own members. The amendment was passed.[4]

Furious, Robespierre and Couthon returned to the Convention the next day, 12 June, and demanded that the amendment of the previous day be revoked. Robespierre made a number of veiled threats and during the debate clashed particularly with Jean-Lambert Tallien,[11] the Convention acceded to Robespierre's wishes and restored the original text of the decree Couthon had drafted.[4]

As the Terror accelerated and members felt more and more threatened, Tallien and others began to make plans for the overthrow of Robespierre. Less than two months later, on 27 July, Tallien and his associates overthrew Robespierre in the Thermidorian Reaction.

Reign of Terror
–
The Reign of Terror or The Terror, is the label given by some historians to a period of violence during the French Revolution. Different historians place the date at either 5 September 1793 or June 1793 or March 1793 or September 1792 or July 1789. Between June 1793 and the end of July 1794, there were 16,594 official death sentences in France, but

French Revolutionary Calendar
–
The revolutionary system was designed in part to remove all religious and royalist influences from the calendar, and was part of a larger attempt at decimalisation in France. Sylvain Maréchal, prominent anticlerical atheist, published the first edition of his Almanach des Honnêtes-gens in 1788, on pages 14–15 appears a calendar, consisting of twelv

Georges Couthon
–
Georges Auguste Couthon was a French politician and lawyer known for his service as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly during the French Revolution. Couthon played an important role in the development of the Law of 22 Prairial, Couthon was born on 22 December 1755 in Orcet in the province of Auvergne. His father was a notary, his mother the daugh

Robespierre
–
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre was a French lawyer and politician. He was one of the best-known and most influential figures associated with the French Revolution, as a member of the Estates-General, the Constituent Assembly and the Jacobin Club, Robespierre was an outspoken advocate for the poor and for democratic institutions. H

Committee of Public Safety
–
The Committee of Public Safety succeeded the previous Committee of General Defence and assumed its role of protecting the newly established republic against foreign attacks and internal rebellion. As a wartime measure, the Committee—composed at first of nine, and later of twelve, members—was given broad powers over military, judicial. It was formed

1.
Lettre anglaise (English Letter) dated 29 June 1793 as published by the French National convention during the Revolution (1793). This document was used to prove English spying and conspiracy.

2.
Maximilien Robespierre, spokesman and a radical voice behind the leadership of the Committee of Public Safety

Couthon
–
Georges Auguste Couthon was a French politician and lawyer known for his service as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly during the French Revolution. Couthon played an important role in the development of the Law of 22 Prairial, Couthon was born on 22 December 1755 in Orcet in the province of Auvergne. His father was a notary, his mother the daugh

Danton
–
Georges Jacques Danton was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution, in particular as the first president of the Committee of Public Safety. He was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality, Danton was born in Arcis-sur-Aube in northeastern France to Jacques Danton and Mary Camus, a resp

Revolutionary Tribunal
–
It was composed of a jury, a public prosecutor, and two substitutes, all nominated by the Convention, and from its judgments there was no appeal. Herman as president and Fouquier-Tinville as public prosecutor, the tribunal terrorized the royalists, soon, too, it came to be used for personal ends, particularly by Robespierre, who employed it for the

Germinal (French Republican Calendar)
–
Germinal was the seventh month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word germen, germination, Germinal was the first month of the spring quarter. It started March 21 or March 22, and ended April 19 or April 20 and it follows Ventôse and precedes Floréal. The events of Germinal 1794 signaled the beginning of the end

Prairial
–
Prairial was the ninth month in the French Republican Calendar. This month was named after the French word prairie, which means meadow and it was the name given to several ships. Prairial was the month of the spring quarter. It started May 20 or May 21 and it ended June 18 or June 19. It follows the Floréal and precedes the Messidor, like all FRC m

Messidor
–
Messidor was the tenth month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word messis, which means harvest, Messidor was the first month of the summer quarter. It started on 19 or 20 June and it ended on 18 or 19 July. It follows the Prairial and precedes the Thermidor, like all FRC months Messidor lasted 30 days and was d

Merlin de Douai
–
Philippe-Antoine Merlin, known as Merlin de Douai was a French politician and lawyer. Merlin de Douai was born at Arleux, Nord, and was called to the Flemish bar association in 1775 and he collaborated in the Répertoire de jurisprudence, the later editions of which appeared under Merlins superintendence, and contributed to other important legal com

1.
Philippe-Antoine Merlin de Douai

2.
Directors

Jean-Lambert Tallien
–
Jean-Lambert Tallien was a French political figure of the revolutionary period. He was the son of the maître dhôtel of the Marquis de Bercy, the family of Tallien was originally from Italy, and moved to the Northern France, near Paris. The marquis, noticing his ability, had him educated, supportive of the Revolution, he gave up his desk to enter a

Thermidorian Reaction
–
The Thermidorian Reaction was a coup détat within the French Revolution against the leaders of the Jacobin Club who had dominated the Committee of Public Safety. It was triggered by a vote of the National Convention to execute Maximilien Robespierre, Louis Antoine de Saint-Just and this ended the most radical phase of the French Revolution. Thermid

3.
The execution of Robespierre on July 28, 1794 marked the end of the first Reign of Terror.

4.
The Closing of the Jacobin Club, during the night of 27–28 July 1794.

Antoine Quentin Fouquier-Tinville
–
Antoine Quentin Fouquier de Tinville was a French prosecutor during the Revolution and Reign of Terror periods. Born in Herouël, a village in the département of the Aisne and he studied law and in 1774 purchased a position as prosecutor procureur attached to the Châtelet in Paris. He sold his office in 1781 to pay off his debts and he seems to have

1.
Prosecutor during the Reign of Terror

French Revolution
–
Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, the causes of the French Revolution are complex and are still debated among historians. Following the Seven Years War and the Ameri

2.
The French government faced a fiscal crisis in the 1780s, and King Louis XVI was blamed for mishandling these affairs.

3.
Caricature of the Third Estate carrying the First Estate (clergy) and the Second Estate (nobility) on its back.

4.
The meeting of the Estates General on 5 May 1789 at Versailles.

Causes of the French Revolution
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Financial, Frances debt, aggravated by French involvement in the American Revolution, led Louis XVI to implement new taxations and to reduce privileges. Political, Louis XVI faced virulent opposition from provincial parlements which were the spearheads of the privileged classes resistance to royal reforms, economic, The deregulation of the grain ma

1.
The Third Estate (commoners) carrying the First (clergy) and Second Estate (nobility) on his back.

French First Republic
–
In the history of France, the First Republic, officially the French Republic, was founded on 21 September 1792 during the French Revolution. The First Republic lasted until the declaration of the First Empire in 1804 under Napoleon, under the Legislative Assembly, which was in power before the proclamation of the First Republic, France was engaged

French Directory
–
It gave its name to the final four years of the French Revolution. The Directory was continually at war with foreign coalitions which at different times included Britain, Austria, Prussia, the Kingdom of Naples, Russia and it annexed Belgium and the left bank of the Rhine, while Bonaparte conquered a large part of Italy. The Directory established s

1.
Paul Barras, the only Director to serve during the entire term of the Directory

2.
The War in the Vendée was a royalist uprising that was suppressed by the republican forces in 1796.

French Consulate
–
The Consulate was the government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804. By extension, the term The Consulate also refers to period of French history. Due to the institutions established during these years, Robert B. Holtman has called the Consulate one of the most i

Day of the Tiles
–
The Day of the Tiles is an event that took place in the French town of Grenoble on the 7th of June in 1788. It was one of the first disturbances which preceded the French Revolution, Grenoble was the scene of popular unrest due to financial hardship from the economic crises. The causes of the French Revolution affected all of France, tensions in ur

Assembly of Vizille
–
The Assembly of Vizille was the result of a meeting of various representatives in Grenoble. Its purpose was to discuss the events of The Day Of The Tiles, on 7 June 1788, riots broke out all over the town of Grenoble. Soldiers sent to quell the disturbances forced the townspeople off the streets, some sources say that the soldiers were sent to disp

Estates-General of 1789
–
The estates general, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm, the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. It was brought to an end when the Third Estate formed into a National Assembly and this signals the outbreak of the French Revolution. The suggestion to summon the Estates General came from the Assembly of Notables inst

1.
Engraving by Isidore-Stanislaus Helman (1743-1806) following a sketch by Charles Monnet (1732-1808). The title is L'Ouverture des États Généraux à Versailles le 5 Mai 1789, "Opening of the Estates-General in Versailles 5 May 1789." It was one of a series by Helman: Principales Journées de la Révolution.

2.
Painting by Auguste Couder showing the opening of the Estates-General

National Assembly (French Revolution)
–
The Estates-General had been called on Dec 4,1789 to deal with Frances financial crisis, but promptly fell to squabbling over its own structure. Its members had elected to represent the estates of the realm, the 1st Estate, the 2nd Estate. They refused this and proceeded to meet separately, on June 13, this group began to call itself the National A

1.
Tinted etching of Louis XVI of France, 1792, wearing a Phrygian cap. This caption refers to Louis's capitulation to the National Assembly, and concludes "The same Louis XVI who bravely waits until his fellow citizens return to their hearths to plan a secret war and exact his revenge."

Tennis Court Oath
–
It was a pivotal event in the early days of the French Revolution. On 17 June, the Third Estate, led by the comte de Mirabeau, on the morning of 20 June, the deputies were shocked to discover that the chamber door was locked and guarded by soldiers. There,576 of the 577 members from the Third Estate took an oath not to separate. The only person who

Storming of the Bastille
–
The Storming of the Bastille occurred in Paris, France, on the afternoon of 14 July 1789. The medieval fortress, armory, and political prison in Paris known as the Bastille represented royal authority in the center of Paris. The prison contained just seven inmates at the time of its storming but was a symbol of abuses by the monarchy, in France, Le

4.
Engraving, c.1789: French soldiers or militia hoisting the heads of Flesselles and the marquis de Launay on pikes. The caption reads "Thus we take revenge on traitors".

Parlement
–
A parlement was a provincial appellate court in the France of the Ancien Régime, i. e. before the French Revolution. In 1789,13 parlements existed, the most important of which was by far the Parlement of Paris, while the English word parliament derives from this French term, parlements were not legislative bodies. They consisted of a dozen or more

French nobility
–
The French nobility was a privileged social class in France during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period to the revolution in 1790. The nobility was revived in 1805 with limited rights as an elite class from the First Empire to the fall of the July Monarchy in 1848. Hereditary titles, without privileges, continued to be granted until the Seco

Civil Constitution of the Clergy
–
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was a law passed on 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, that caused the immediate subordination of the Catholic Church in France to the French government. Earlier legislation had already arranged the confiscation of the Catholic Churchs French land holdings and this new law completed the destruction of th

1.
A commemorative plate from 1790 shows a curate swearing the Constitution.

2.
In this caricature, after the decree of 16 February 1790, monks and nuns enjoy their new freedom.

Flight to Varennes
–
They escaped only as far as the small town of Varennes, where they were arrested after having been recognized at their previous stop in Sainte-Menehould. The incident was a point after which popular hostility towards the French monarchy as an institution, as well as towards the king and queen as individuals. The kings attempted flight provoked char

1.
Louis XVI and his family, dressed as bourgeois, arrested in Varennes.

2.
Jean-Baptiste Drouet, who recognised the royal family.

3.
Drouet recognized the king thanks to his profile on coins and assignats.

Champ de Mars Massacre
–
The Champ de Mars Massacre took place on 17 July 1791 in Paris in the midst of the French Revolution. The event is named after the site of the massacre, the Champ de Mars, two days before, the National Constituent Assembly issued a decree that the king, Louis XVI, would remain king under a constitutional monarchy. This decision came after King Loui

1.
Lafayette orders his troops to fire

Declaration of Pillnitz
–
It declared the joint support of the Holy Roman Empire and of Prussia for King Louis XVI of France against the French Revolution. At the same time, many French aristocrats were fleeing France and taking up residence in neighbouring countries, spreading fear of the Revolution, after the Flight to Varennes in June 1791, Louis had been arrested and wa

French Constitution of 1791
–
The short-lived French Constitution of 1791 was the first written constitution in France, created after the collapse of the absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime. One of the precepts of the revolution was adopting constitutionality. The National Assembly began the process of drafting a constitution, the Declaration of the Rights of Man, adopted on

1.
French Constitution of 1791

Legislative Assembly (France)
–
The Legislative Assembly was the legislature of France from 1 October 1791 to 20 September 1792 during the years of the French Revolution. It provided the focus of debate and revolutionary law-making between the periods of the National Constituent Assembly and of the National Convention. The National Constituent Assembly dissolved itself on 30 Sept

1.
Medal of the Legislative Assembly

War of the First Coalition
–
France declared war on the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792. In July 1792, an army under the Duke of Brunswick and composed mostly of Prussians joined the Austrian side and invaded France, France suffered reverses and internal strife and responded with draconian measures. The Committee of Public Safety formed and the en masse drafted a

1.
The Battle of Valmy was a decisive victory for the French revolutionary army.

Brunswick Manifesto
–
The Brunswick Manifesto threatened that if the French royal family were harmed, then French civilians would be harmed. On 20 April 1792, Revolutionary France declared war on Austria, later, on 28 April, France invaded the Austrian Netherlands. Prussia joined the war against France, and on 30 July Austria and Prussia began an invasion of France, on

1.
Anonymous caricature depicting the treatment given to the Brunswick Manifesto by the French population

Paris Commune (French Revolution)
–
The Paris Commune during the French Revolution was the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just after the storming of the Bastille, the Paris Commune became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, essentially refusing to take orders from the central French government. It took charge of routine civic functions

10 August (French Revolution)
–
The Insurrection of 10 August 1792 was one of the defining events in the history of the French Revolution. The storming of the Tuileries Palace by the National Guard of the insurrectional Paris Commune and revolutionary fédérés from Marseilles, King Louis XVI and the royal family took shelter with the Legislative Assembly, which was suspended. The

September Massacres
–
The September Massacres were a wave of killings in Paris and other cities in late summer 1792, during the French Revolution. There was a fear that foreign and royalist armies would attack Paris, radicals called for preemptive action, especially journalist Jean-Paul Marat, who called on draftees to kill the prisoners before they could be freed. The

1.
The September Massacres

2.
Mass killing of prisoners that took place in Paris

National Convention
–
The National Convention was the third government of the French Revolution, following the two-year National Constituent Assembly and the one-year Legislative Assembly. Created after the insurrection of 10 August 1792, it was the first French government organized as a republic. The Convention sat as an assembly from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 17

Execution of Louis XVI
–
The execution of Louis XVI, by means of the guillotine, took place on 21 January 1793 at the Place de la Révolution in Paris. It was an event of the Revolution. He was convicted in a vote and condemned to death by a large majority. He heard his last Mass, served by Cléry, and received Communion, the Mass requisites were provided by special directio

2.
"The Death of Louis XVI King of France" from an English engraving, published 1798.

Jean-Paul Marat
–
Jean-Paul Marat was a French political theorist, physician, and scientist who became best known for his role as a radical journalist and politician during the French Revolution. He was one of the most radical voices of the French Revolution, Marat was assassinated by Charlotte Corday, a Girondist sympathizer, while taking a medicinal bath for his d

1.
Jean-Paul Marat

2.
"Marat's Triumph": a popular engraving of Marat borne away by a joyous crowd following his acquittal.

The Death of Marat
–
The Death of Marat is a painting by Jacques-Louis David of the murdered French revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat. It is one of the most famous images of the French Revolution, David was the leading French painter, as well as a Montagnard and a member of the revolutionary Committee of General Security. The painting shows the radical journalist ly

1.
La Mort de Marat

2.
Detail of The Death of Marat showing the paper held in Marat's left hand. The letter reads (in French) "Il suffit que je sois bien malheureuse pour avoir droit a votre bienveillance" or in English, "Given that I am unhappy, I have a right to your help"

Marie Antoinette
–
Marie Antoinette (/ˈmæriˌæntwəˈnɛt/, /ˌɑ̃ːntwə-/, /ˌɑ̃ːtwə-/, US /məˈriː-/, French, born Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna, was the last Queen of France and Navarre before the French Revolution. She was born an Archduchess of Austria, and was the fifteenth and second youngest child of Empress Maria Theresa and Francis I, in April 1770, upon her marriag

Georges Danton
–
Georges Jacques Danton was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution, in particular as the first president of the Committee of Public Safety. He was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality, Danton was born in Arcis-sur-Aube in northeastern France to Jacques Danton and Mary Camus, a resp

Camille Desmoulins
–
Lucie Simplice Camille Benoît Desmoulins, a journalist and politician, played an important role in the French Revolution. He was a friend of Maximilien Robespierre and a close friend and political ally of Georges Danton. Desmoulins was tried and executed alongside Danton when the Committee of Public Safety reacted against Dantonist opposition, Desm

Maximilien Robespierre
–
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre was a French lawyer and politician. He was one of the best-known and most influential figures associated with the French Revolution, as a member of the Estates-General, the Constituent Assembly and the Jacobin Club, Robespierre was an outspoken advocate for the poor and for democratic institutions. H

First White Terror
–
The term White Terror describes a period of the French Revolution during which a wave of violent attacks swept across much of France in 1795. The victims of violence were people identified as being associated with the Reign of Terror - followers of Robespierre and Marat. In particular locations, there were more organised counter-revolutionary movem

1.
Massacre of Republican prisoners in Lyon in 1795

Jacobin
–
Initially founded by anti-Royalist deputies from Brittany, the Club grew into a nationwide republican movement, with a membership estimated at a half million or more. The Jacobin Club was heterogeneous and included both prominent parliamentary factions of the early 1790s, the radical Mountain and the more moderate Girondins, in 1792–93, the Girondi

1.
Seal of the Jacobin Club, 1789–1792.

2.
The door of the Jacobin Club was in the Rue Saint-Honoré, Paris.

3.
Engraving "Closing of the Jacobin Club, during the night of 27–28 July 1794, or 9–10 Thermidor, year 2 of the Republic"

Constitution of the Year III
–
The Constitution of the Year III is the constitution that founded the Directory. It remained in effect until the coup of 18 Brumaire effectively ended the Revolution and it was more conservative than the abortive democratic French Constitution of 1793. The central government retained power, including emergency powers to curb freedom of the press. T

1.
5 August 1796, approximately 10 hours. Battle of Castiglione. Under the command of Napoleon, Marmont brings artillery onto Mount Medolano while Augereau's division begins the attack in the central plain.

2.
Map of the battle

3.
Monte Medolano

4.
Sides battle Monte Medolano 1796

Battle of Neresheim

1.
Archduke Charles

2.
Count Baillet de Latour

3.
Jean Victor Moreau

4.
Laurent Saint-Cyr

Battle of Rovereto

1.
Battle of Rovereto

2.
Dagobert von Würmser

3.
André Masséna

4.
Battle of Rovereto strategic situation

Battle of Bassano

1.
The church of San Giovanni on the outskirts of Bassano, Bonaparte's headquarters during the battle

2.
Battle of Rovereto, 4 Sept 1796

3.
Battle of Bassano, 8 Sept 1796

4.
Race for Mantua, 9–15 Sept 1796

Battle of Emmendingen

1.
Moreau's troops withdraw through the Val d'Enfer (Valley of Hell)

2.
French troops overwhelmed the Swabian militia at Kehl on 24 June 1796

3.
Battle of Emmendingen

4.
This aerial picture of Malterdingen depicts the hilly and forested terrain surrounding the village.

1.
Reign of Terror
–
The Reign of Terror or The Terror, is the label given by some historians to a period of violence during the French Revolution. Different historians place the date at either 5 September 1793 or June 1793 or March 1793 or September 1792 or July 1789. Between June 1793 and the end of July 1794, there were 16,594 official death sentences in France, but the total number of deaths in France in 1793–96 in only the civil war in the Vendée is estimated at 250,000 counter-revolutionaries and 200,000 republicans. During 1794, revolutionary France was beset with conspiracies by internal, within France, the revolution was opposed by the French nobility, which had lost its inherited privileges. The Catholic Church opposed the revolution, which had turned the clergy into employees of the state, in addition, the French First Republic was engaged in a series of wars with neighboring powers, and parts of France were engaging in civil war against the loyalist regime. The latter were grouped in the parliamentary faction called the Mountain. Through the Revolutionary Tribunal, the Terrors leaders exercised broad powers, the Reign was a manifestation of the strong strain on centralized power. Many historians have debated the reasons the French Revolution took such a turn during the Reign of Terror of 1793–94. The public was frustrated that the equality and anti-poverty measures that the revolution originally promised were not materializing. Jacques Rouxs Manifesto of the Enraged on 25 June 1793, describes the extent to which, four years into the revolution, the foundation of the Terror is centered on the April 1793 creation of the Committee of Public Safety and its militant Jacobin delegates. Those in power believed the Committee of Public Safety was an unfortunate, according to Mathiez, they touched only with trepidation and reluctance the regime established by the Constituent Assembly so as not to interfere with the early accomplishments of the revolution. Similar to Mathiez, Richard Cobb introduced competing circumstances of revolt, counter-revolutionary rebellions taking place in Lyon, Brittany, Vendée, Nantes, and Marseille were threatening the revolution with royalist ideas. Cobb writes, the revolutionaries themselves, living as if in combat… were easily persuaded that only terror, Terror was used in these rebellions both to execute inciters and to provide a very visible example to those who might be considering rebellion. Cobb agrees with Mathiez that the Terror was simply a response to circumstances, at the same time, Cobb rejects Mathiezs Marxist interpretation that elites controlled the Reign of Terror to the significant benefit of the bourgeoisie. Instead, Cobb argues that social struggles between the classes were seldom the reason for actions and sentiments. Widespread terror and a consequent rise in executions came after external and internal threats were vastly reduced, with the backing of the national guard, they persuaded the convention to arrest 29 Girondist leaders, including Jacques Pierre Brissot. On 13 July the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat – a Jacobin leader, georges Danton, the leader of the August 1792 uprising against the king, was removed from the committee. The Jacobins identified themselves with the movement and the sans-culottes

2.
French Revolutionary Calendar
–
The revolutionary system was designed in part to remove all religious and royalist influences from the calendar, and was part of a larger attempt at decimalisation in France. Sylvain Maréchal, prominent anticlerical atheist, published the first edition of his Almanach des Honnêtes-gens in 1788, on pages 14–15 appears a calendar, consisting of twelve months. The first month is Mars, ou Princeps, the last month is Février, the lengths of the months are the same, however, the 10th, 20th, and 30th are singled out of each month as the end of a décade. Individual days were assigned, instead of to the saints, to people noteworthy for mostly secular achievements. Later editions of the almanac would switch to the Republican Calendar, the days of the French Revolution and Republic saw many efforts to sweep away various trappings of the ancien régime, some of these were more successful than others. The new Republican government sought to institute, among other reforms, a new social and legal system, a new system of weights and measures, and a new calendar. Amid nostalgia for the ancient Roman Republic, the theories of the Enlightenment were at their peak, natural constants, multiples of ten, and Latin as well as Old Greek derivations formed the fundamental blocks from which the new systems were built. The new calendar was created by a commission under the direction of the politician Charles-Gilbert Romme seconded by Claude Joseph Ferry and it is because of his position as rapporteur of the commission that the creation of the republican calendar is attributed to Romme. The calendar is called the French Revolutionary Calendar because it was created during the Revolution. Indeed, there was initially a debate as to whether the calendar should celebrate the Great Revolution, which began in July 1789, or the Republic, immediately following 14 July 1789, papers and pamphlets started calling 1789 year I of Liberty and the following years II and III. It was in 1792, with the problem of dating financial transactions. Originally, the choice of epoch was either 1 January 1789 or 14 July 1789, after some hesitation the assembly decided on 2 January 1792 that all official documents would use the era of Liberty and that the year IV of Liberty started on 1 January 1792. This usage was modified on 22 September 1792 when the Republic was proclaimed, the establishment of the Republic was used as the epochal date for the calendar, therefore, the calendar commemorates the Republic, not the Revolution. In France, it is known as the calendrier républicain as well as the calendrier révolutionnaire, the Revolution is usually considered to have ended with the coup of 18 Brumaire in Year VIII. The French Republic ended with the coronation of Napoleon I as Empereur des Français on 11 Frimaire, Year XIII, French coins of the period naturally used this calendar. Many show the year in Arabic numbers, although Roman numerals were used on some issues, Year 11 coins typically have a XI date to avoid confusion with the Roman II. Napoléon finally abolished the calendar with effect from 1 January 1806, however, it was used again during the brief Paris Commune, 6–23 May 1871. These documents have kept their original dates for legal accuracy and citation purposes, years appear in writing as Roman numerals, with epoch 22 September 1792, the beginning of the Republican Era

French Revolutionary Calendar
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French Republican Calendar of 1794, drawn by Philibert-Louis Debucourt
French Revolutionary Calendar
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A copy of the French Republican Calendar in the Historical Museum of Lausanne.
French Revolutionary Calendar
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L AN 2 DE LA REPUBLIQUE FR. (Year 2 of the French Republic) on a barn near Geneva
French Revolutionary Calendar
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French Revolutionary pocket watch showing ten-day décade names and thirty-day month numbers from the Republican Calendar, but with duodecimal time. On display at Neuchâtel Beaux-Arts museum.

3.
Georges Couthon
–
Georges Auguste Couthon was a French politician and lawyer known for his service as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly during the French Revolution. Couthon played an important role in the development of the Law of 22 Prairial, Couthon was born on 22 December 1755 in Orcet in the province of Auvergne. His father was a notary, his mother the daughter of a shopkeeper, Couthon, like generations of his family before him, was a member of the lower bourgeoisie. Following in his father’s footsteps, Couthon became a notary, the skills he acquired enabled him to serve on the Provincial Assembly of Auvergne in 1787, his first experience of politics. He was well-regarded by others as an honest, well-mannered individual, as the Revolution grew nearer, Couthon started to become disabled due to advancing paralysis in both legs. His political aspirations took him away from Orcet and to Paris, while in Clermont, he became a fixture at its literary society, where he earned acclaim for his discussion on the topic of Patience. In 1791, Couthon became one of the deputies of the Legislative Assembly, in 1791, Couthon traveled to Paris to fulfill his duty as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly. He then joined the growing Jacobin Club of Paris and he chose to sit on the Left at the first meeting of the Assembly, but soon decided against associating himself with such radicals as he feared they were shocking the majority. He was a proficient speaker, and there is evidence that he exploited his condition as a paraplegic in order to gain the ear of the Assembly on issues he found important. In September 1792, Couthon was elected to the National Convention, at the Trial of Louis XVI in December 1792, he argued loudly against the Girondist request for a referendum. He would go on to vote for the sentence without appeal. On 30 May 1793, Couthon was elected to the Committee of Public Safety, three days after rising to this position, Couthon was the first to demand the arrest of proscribed Girondists. Growing unrest had been occurring in Lyon in late February and early May, Couthon would be the representative that Lyon would surrender to on 9 October 1793. He was suspicious of the unrest in Lyon upon his arrival, on 12 October 1793, the Committee of Public Safety passed a decree that they believed would make an example of Lyon. The decree specified that the city itself was to be destroyed, following the decree, Couthon established special courts that would supervise the demolition of the richest homes in Lyon, leaving the homes of the poor untouched. In addition to the demolition of the city, the decree dictated that the rebels, Couthon had difficulty accepting the destruction of Lyon and proceeded slowly with his orders. Eventually, he would find that he could not stomach the task at hand, Republican atrocities in Lyon began after Couthon was replaced on 3 November 1793 by Jean Marie Collot dHerbois, who would go on to condemn 1,880 Lyonnais by April 1794. Following his departure from Lyon, Couthon returned to Paris, and on 21 December and he contributed to the prosecution of the Hébertists and continued serving on the Committee of Public Safety for the next several months

4.
Robespierre
–
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre was a French lawyer and politician. He was one of the best-known and most influential figures associated with the French Revolution, as a member of the Estates-General, the Constituent Assembly and the Jacobin Club, Robespierre was an outspoken advocate for the poor and for democratic institutions. He campaigned for universal suffrage in France, price controls on basic food commodities. But although he was an ardent opponent of the penalty, he played an important role in arranging the execution of King Louis XVI. He is perhaps best known for his role in the French Revolutions Reign of Terror and he was named as a member of the powerful Committee of Public Safety launched by his political ally Georges Danton and exerted his influence to suppress the left-wing Hébertists. The Terror ended a few later with Robespierres arrest and execution in July. Robespierres personal responsibility for the excesses of the Terror remains the subject of debate among historians of the French Revolution. Influenced by 18th-century Enlightenment philosophes such as Rousseau and Montesquieu, Robespierre was a capable articulator of the beliefs of the left-wing bourgeoisie and his steadfast adherence and defense of the views he expressed earned him the nickname lIncorruptible. Robespierres reputation has gone through cycles of re-appraisal. During the Soviet Era, Robespierre was used as an example of a Revolutionary figure and his reputation peaked in the 1920s with the influence of French historian Albert Mathiez. In more recent times, his reputation has suffered as historians have associated him with an attempt at a radical purification of politics through the killing of enemies, Maximilien Robespierre was born in Arras in the old French province of Artois. His family has been traced back to the 12th century in Picardy and it has been suggested that he was of Irish descent, his surname possibly a corruption of Robert Speirs. His paternal grandfather, also named Maximilien de Robespierre, established himself in Arras as a lawyer and his father, François Maximilien Barthélémy de Robespierre, was a lawyer at the Conseil dArtois. He married Jacqueline Marguerite Carrault, the daughter of a brewer, Maximilien was the oldest of four children and was conceived out of wedlock. His siblings were Charlotte, Henriette, and Augustin, on 7 July 1764, Madame de Robespierre gave birth to a stillborn son, she died nine days later. Devastated by his wifes death, François de Robespierre subsequently left Arras, the children would visit each other on Sundays. Already literate at age 8, Maximilien started attending the collège of Arras, in October 1769, on the recommendation of the bishop, he received a scholarship at the Collège Louis-le-Grand, University of Paris in Paris. Robespierre studied there until age 23, receiving his training as a lawyer, upon his graduation, he received a special prize of 600-livre for twelve years of exemplary academic success and personal good conduct

5.
Committee of Public Safety
–
The Committee of Public Safety succeeded the previous Committee of General Defence and assumed its role of protecting the newly established republic against foreign attacks and internal rebellion. As a wartime measure, the Committee—composed at first of nine, and later of twelve, members—was given broad powers over military, judicial. It was formed as a body to supervise and expedite the work of the executive bodies of the Convention. As the Committee tried to meet the dangers of a coalition of European nations and counter-revolutionary forces within the country, in July 1793, following the defeat at the Convention of the Girondins, the prominent leaders of the radical Jacobins—Maximilien Robespierre and Saint-Just —were added to the Committee. The power of the Committee peaked between August 1793 and July 1794, in December 1793, the Convention formally conferred executive power upon the Committee. The execution of Robespierre in July 1794 represented a period against the Committee of Public Safety. This is known as the Thermidorian Reaction, as Robespierres fall from power occurred during the Revolutionary month of Thermidor, the Committees influence diminished, and it was disestablished in 1795. News of his defection caused alarm in Paris, where imminent defeat by the Austrians, the betrayal of the revolutionary government by Dumouriez lent greater credence to this belief. In light of this threat, the Girondin leader Maximin Isnard proposed the creation of a nine-member Committee of Public Safety. Isnard was supported in this effort by Georges Danton, who declared, This Committee is precisely what we want, the Committee was formally created on 6 April 1793. Closely associated with the leadership of Danton, it was known as the Danton Committee. Danton steered the Committee through the 31 May and 2 June 1793 journées that resulted in the fall of the Girondins, however, when the Committee was recomposed on 10 July, Danton was not included. Nevertheless, he continued to support the centralization of power by the Committee, on 27 July 1793, Maximilien Robespierre was elected to the Committee. At this time, the Committee was entering a powerful and active phase, which would see it become a de facto dictatorship alongside its powerful partner. The broad and centralized powers of the Committee were codified by the Law of 14 Frimaire on 4 December 1793, Hérault de Séchelles—a friend and ally of Danton—was expelled from the Committee of Public Safety, arrested, and tried alongside them. On 5 April 1794, the Dantonists went to the guillotine, certainly the strength of the committees had been made evident, as had their ability to control and silence opposition. The Law of 14 Frimaire was enacted in December 1793 to centralize, the law enumerated various forms of public enemies, made mandatory their denunciation, and severely limited the legal recourse available to those accused. The punishment for all crimes under the Law of 22 Prairal was death, from the initiation of this law to the fall of Robespierre on 27 July, more people were condemned to death than in the entire previous history of the Revolutionary Tribunal

Committee of Public Safety
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Lettre anglaise (English Letter) dated 29 June 1793 as published by the French National convention during the Revolution (1793). This document was used to prove English spying and conspiracy.
Committee of Public Safety
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Maximilien Robespierre, spokesman and a radical voice behind the leadership of the Committee of Public Safety

6.
Couthon
–
Georges Auguste Couthon was a French politician and lawyer known for his service as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly during the French Revolution. Couthon played an important role in the development of the Law of 22 Prairial, Couthon was born on 22 December 1755 in Orcet in the province of Auvergne. His father was a notary, his mother the daughter of a shopkeeper, Couthon, like generations of his family before him, was a member of the lower bourgeoisie. Following in his father’s footsteps, Couthon became a notary, the skills he acquired enabled him to serve on the Provincial Assembly of Auvergne in 1787, his first experience of politics. He was well-regarded by others as an honest, well-mannered individual, as the Revolution grew nearer, Couthon started to become disabled due to advancing paralysis in both legs. His political aspirations took him away from Orcet and to Paris, while in Clermont, he became a fixture at its literary society, where he earned acclaim for his discussion on the topic of Patience. In 1791, Couthon became one of the deputies of the Legislative Assembly, in 1791, Couthon traveled to Paris to fulfill his duty as a deputy in the Legislative Assembly. He then joined the growing Jacobin Club of Paris and he chose to sit on the Left at the first meeting of the Assembly, but soon decided against associating himself with such radicals as he feared they were shocking the majority. He was a proficient speaker, and there is evidence that he exploited his condition as a paraplegic in order to gain the ear of the Assembly on issues he found important. In September 1792, Couthon was elected to the National Convention, at the Trial of Louis XVI in December 1792, he argued loudly against the Girondist request for a referendum. He would go on to vote for the sentence without appeal. On 30 May 1793, Couthon was elected to the Committee of Public Safety, three days after rising to this position, Couthon was the first to demand the arrest of proscribed Girondists. Growing unrest had been occurring in Lyon in late February and early May, Couthon would be the representative that Lyon would surrender to on 9 October 1793. He was suspicious of the unrest in Lyon upon his arrival, on 12 October 1793, the Committee of Public Safety passed a decree that they believed would make an example of Lyon. The decree specified that the city itself was to be destroyed, following the decree, Couthon established special courts that would supervise the demolition of the richest homes in Lyon, leaving the homes of the poor untouched. In addition to the demolition of the city, the decree dictated that the rebels, Couthon had difficulty accepting the destruction of Lyon and proceeded slowly with his orders. Eventually, he would find that he could not stomach the task at hand, Republican atrocities in Lyon began after Couthon was replaced on 3 November 1793 by Jean Marie Collot dHerbois, who would go on to condemn 1,880 Lyonnais by April 1794. Following his departure from Lyon, Couthon returned to Paris, and on 21 December and he contributed to the prosecution of the Hébertists and continued serving on the Committee of Public Safety for the next several months

7.
Danton
–
Georges Jacques Danton was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution, in particular as the first president of the Committee of Public Safety. He was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality, Danton was born in Arcis-sur-Aube in northeastern France to Jacques Danton and Mary Camus, a respectable, but not wealthy family. As a child, he was attacked by animals, resulting in the disfigurement and scarring of the skin on his face. After obtaining an education he became an Advocate in Paris. He married Antoinette Gabrielle Charpentier on 14 June 1787 at the church of Saint-Germain-lAuxerrois in Paris, Danton was considered a very mischievous boy. Due to this, he went to different schools, also, he had a very high natural IQ. As a result, he was bored and disinterested in his classes. His first teacher was his grandfather and he was able to pass his classes with little effort, when he was 9, he was sent to a boys school. This is where Danton learned Latin and he was later sent to a school in Troyes for a year due to his mother thinking that he hasnt given up his mischievous ways as a child. Later, he attended a boarding house taught by Oratorians until he was 17, here, he learned more Latin and about the Bible, mainly the Acts of the Apostles and about Christian beliefs. He didnt really take to them, however, as early as age 12, he had already acquired the skills to become a leader. He led fellow classmates to either rebel or riot and this showed his leadership skills and how much his classmates already respected him at such a young age. He also consistently questioned authority, which will be seen later during the French revolution when he openly disrespected and called out Lafayette as a traitor during a meeting. At a young age, he had amazing writing and speech skills, as later during a competition, he took all the prizes for French discourse, Latin narration. Was highly influenced by thinkers of the time, such as Montesquieu. Studied at Reim University where he became a lawyer, later become bored of the career and became an orator. Was seen as a man of the people by then because he pleaded for the poor. Both his classmates, teachers and grandfather revered him as a prodigy and his amazing writing and speaking skills later made people give him the nickname “The Thunderer”

Danton
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Georges-Jacques Danton. Musée Carnavalet, Paris
Danton
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Signature
Danton
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According to a biographer, "Danton's height was colossal, his make athletic, his features strongly marked, coarse, and displeasing; his voice shook the domes of the halls".
Danton
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Danton addressing the National Convention.

8.
Revolutionary Tribunal
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It was composed of a jury, a public prosecutor, and two substitutes, all nominated by the Convention, and from its judgments there was no appeal. Herman as president and Fouquier-Tinville as public prosecutor, the tribunal terrorized the royalists, soon, too, it came to be used for personal ends, particularly by Robespierre, who employed it for the condemnation of his adversaries. Although Robespierre was the principal purveyor of the tribunal, we possess only one of these lists bearing his signature, the Revolutionary Tribunal was suppressed on 31 May 1795. Among its most celebrated victims may be mentioned Marie Antoinette, the Hebertists, » This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. article name needed

9.
Germinal (French Republican Calendar)
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Germinal was the seventh month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word germen, germination, Germinal was the first month of the spring quarter. It started March 21 or March 22, and ended April 19 or April 20 and it follows Ventôse and precedes Floréal. The events of Germinal 1794 signaled the beginning of the end of the Reign of Terror, like all FRC months, Germinal lasted 30 days and was divided into three 10-day weeks called décades. Every day had the name of a plant, except the 5th and 10th day of every decade. The 26th and 27th changed their role in later years, Germinal, a novel by Émile Zola titled after the month Spring Quarter of Year II

Germinal (French Republican Calendar)

10.
Prairial
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Prairial was the ninth month in the French Republican Calendar. This month was named after the French word prairie, which means meadow and it was the name given to several ships. Prairial was the month of the spring quarter. It started May 20 or May 21 and it ended June 18 or June 19. It follows the Floréal and precedes the Messidor, like all FRC months, Prairial lasted 30 days and was divided into three 10-day weeks called décades. Every day had the name of a plant, except the 5th and 10th day of every decade

Prairial

11.
Messidor
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Messidor was the tenth month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word messis, which means harvest, Messidor was the first month of the summer quarter. It started on 19 or 20 June and it ended on 18 or 19 July. It follows the Prairial and precedes the Thermidor, like all FRC months Messidor lasted 30 days and was divided into three 10-day weeks called décades. Every day had the name of a plant, except the 5th and 10th day of every decade

Messidor

12.
Merlin de Douai
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Philippe-Antoine Merlin, known as Merlin de Douai was a French politician and lawyer. Merlin de Douai was born at Arleux, Nord, and was called to the Flemish bar association in 1775 and he collaborated in the Répertoire de jurisprudence, the later editions of which appeared under Merlins superintendence, and contributed to other important legal compilations. In 1782 he purchased a position as secretary at the chancellery of the Flanders parlement. His reputation spread to Paris and he was consulted by leading magistrates, the Duke of Orléans selected him to be a member of his privy council. He carried legislation for the abolition of primogeniture, secured equality of inheritance between relatives of the degree, and between men and women. He also prepared the report for the Assembly which argued that no compensation should be paid to the German princes whose lands in Alsace were forfeit when France incorporated them and his numerous reports were supplemented by popular exposition of current legislation in the Journal de legislation. On the dissolution of the Assembly, he became judge of the court at Douai. He exercised missions in his region, and accused General Charles François Dumouriez of having betrayed the country during the Campaign of the Low Countries. His efforts were directed to the prevention of any new gathering of powers by the Jacobin Club, the Commune. Merlin de Douai convinced the Committee of Public Safety to agree with the closing of the Jacobin Club, Merlins code abolished confiscation, branding, and life imprisonment, and was based chiefly on the penal code drawn up in September 1791. He was made Minister of Justice and later Minister of the General Police under the Directory, after the coup détat known as 18 Fructidor, he became one of the five Directors on 5 September 1797. He was accused of the bankruptcy and various other failures of the government and was forced to retire into private life during the Coup of 30 Prairial VII on 18 June 1799, Merlin de Douai had no share in Napoleon Bonapartes 18 Brumaire coup. Under the Consulate, Merlin de Douai accepted a position in the Cour de cassation. Although he had no share in drawing up the Napoleonic code and he became a member of the Conseil dÉtat, Count of the Empire, and Grand Officier de la Légion dhonneur. Having resumed his functions during the Hundred Days, he was one of those banished on the Second Bourbon Restoration, the years of Merlin de Douais exile were devoted to his Répertoire de jurisprudence and to his Recueil alphabétique des questions de droit. Merlin de Douai died in Paris, Merlin de Douais son, Antoine François Eugène Merlin, was a well-known general in the French army, and served through most of the Napoleonic Wars. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Merlin, Philippe Antoine. In turn, it gives the reference, François Auguste Alexis Mignet, Portraits et notices historiques

13.
Jean-Lambert Tallien
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Jean-Lambert Tallien was a French political figure of the revolutionary period. He was the son of the maître dhôtel of the Marquis de Bercy, the family of Tallien was originally from Italy, and moved to the Northern France, near Paris. The marquis, noticing his ability, had him educated, supportive of the Revolution, he gave up his desk to enter a printers office, and by 1791 was overseer of the printing department of the Comte de Provence. This enterprise had its expenses paid by the Jacobin Club, and he became even more present in politics after organizing, together with Jean-Marie Collot dHerbois, the great Fête de la Liberté on 15 April 1792, in honour of the released soldiers of Chateau-Vieux. Tallien was one of the most active leaders in the storming of the Tuileries Palace on 10 August. He committed himself to his new mission, and habitually appeared at the bar of the Assembly on behalf of the Commune. He was a participant in the September Massacres of 1792. He announced the September Massacres in terms of apology and praise, at the same time, he had several people imprisoned in order to save them from the violence of the mob, and protected several suspects himself. After a short mission in the provinces he returned to Paris, and took an active part in the coups détat of 31 May and 2 June. For the next few months he kept a low profile, but on 23 September 1793 and this was the month in which the Reign of Terror was organized under the superintendence of the Committees of Public Safety and Committee of General Security. Tallien was of the most notorious envoys sent over to establish the Terror in the provinces, the young Tallien, who was barely 24, became notorious for his administration of justice in Bordeaux through his bloody affinity to “feed ‘la sainte guillotine’. However, after the days of his mission in Bordeaux. This tendency may be due to his involvement with Thérésa Cabarrús. Tallien not only spared her life but fell in love with her, Tallien suggested, “It is better to marry than to be beheaded. ”After Tallien became involved with Cabarrús, there was a notable decline in the number of executions in Bordeaux. Thérésa was an influence, and from the lives she saved by her entreaties she received the name of Notre-Dame de Thermidor after the onset of the Thermidorian Reaction. Tallien was even elected president of the Convention on 24 March 1794, maximillian Robespierre certainly took notice of Talliens “royalist” behavior and recalled him to Paris. Maximilien Robespierres own political ideas implied his readiness to strike at many of his colleagues in the committees, Robespierres rivals were determined to strike first. When Tallien was recalled, Thérésa Cabarrús was recaptured and imprisoned and she was set to face trial and likely would have been executed

14.
Thermidorian Reaction
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The Thermidorian Reaction was a coup détat within the French Revolution against the leaders of the Jacobin Club who had dominated the Committee of Public Safety. It was triggered by a vote of the National Convention to execute Maximilien Robespierre, Louis Antoine de Saint-Just and this ended the most radical phase of the French Revolution. Thermidorian Reaction also refers to the period until the National Convention was superseded by the Directory. Prominent figures of Thermidor include Paul Barras, Jean-Lambert Tallien, Thermidor represents the final throes of the Reign of Terror. His only real power at this time lay in the Jacobin Club. Many others who conspired against Robespierre did so for practical and personal reasons. The surviving Dantonists, such as Merlin de Thionville, wanted revenge for the death of Georges Danton and, more importantly, among the latter were Joseph Fouché and Pierre-Louis Bentabole, who engineered Robespierres downfall. In the end, it was Robespierre himself who united all his enemies, on 8 Thermidor he gave a speech to the Convention in which he railed against enemies and conspiracies, some within the powerful committees. As he did not give the names of these traitors, all in the Convention had reason to fear that they were the targets, later, he went and enlisted the support of the Jacobin Club, where he denounced Collot and Billaud. These men then spent the night planning the following day’s coup, conspiracies against Maximilien Robespierre who had dominated the Committee of Public Safety came together on 9 Thermidor 1794. Cries went up of Down with the tyrant, Robespierre then made his appeal to the deputies of the Right, Deputies of the Right, men of honour, men of virtue, give me the floor, since the assassins will not. However, the Right was unmoved, and an order was made to arrest Robespierre, troops from the Paris Commune arrived to liberate the prisoners. The Commune troops, under General Coffinhal（French：--）, then marched against the Convention itself, the Convention responded by ordering troops of its own under Paul Barras to be called out. When the Communes troops heard the news of this, order began to break down, Robespierre and his supporters also gathered at the Hôtel de Ville. The Convention declared them to be outlaws, meaning that upon verification the fugitives could be executed within 24 hours without a trial, as the night went on the Commune forces at the Hôtel de Ville deserted until none of them remained. The Convention troops under Barras approached the Hôtel around 2,00 am on 28 July, as they came, Robespierres brother Augustin leapt out of a window in an escape attempt, broke his legs, and was arrested. Couthon, who due to disease was paralysed from the waist down, was found lying at the bottom of a staircase. Robespierre was shot in the face, and his jaw was shattered, there are two accounts of how he received the wound

Thermidorian Reaction
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Ninth Thermidor by Valery Jacobi.
Thermidorian Reaction
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Gendarme Merda shooting at Robespierre during the night of 9 Thermidor.
Thermidorian Reaction
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The execution of Robespierre on July 28, 1794 marked the end of the first Reign of Terror.
Thermidorian Reaction
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The Closing of the Jacobin Club, during the night of 27–28 July 1794.

15.
Antoine Quentin Fouquier-Tinville
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Antoine Quentin Fouquier de Tinville was a French prosecutor during the Revolution and Reign of Terror periods. Born in Herouël, a village in the département of the Aisne and he studied law and in 1774 purchased a position as prosecutor procureur attached to the Châtelet in Paris. He sold his office in 1781 to pay off his debts and he seems to have adopted revolutionary ideas early on, but little is known of the part he played at the outbreak of the Revolution. According to himself, he was part of the National Guard at its formation and he was active in the politics of his section in 1789, and in August 1792, supported the sans culotte movement. Backed by his cousin Camille Desmoulins, Fouquier de Tinville became the foreman of a jury established to pass verdict on crimes of Royalists arrested after the journée du 10 août in 1792. When the Revolutionary Tribunal of Paris was created by the National Convention on 10 March 1793, he was appointed its public prosecutor and his zeal in prosecution earned him the nickname Purveyor to the Guillotine. His activity during this earned him the reputation of one of the most sinister figures of the Revolution. His office as public prosecutor arguably reflected a need to display the appearance of legality during what was essentially political command, Fouquier de Tinville, like Maximilien Robespierre, was known for his ruthless radicalism. Apparently the nuns, whom he called criminal assassins, were corrupted by the ex-Jesuit Rousseau de Roseicquet, when the judge read this piece of Fouquier-Tinvilles prose, he condemned them to be deported, as well as all those who had given them refuge. His career ended with the fall of Robespierre at the start of the Thermidorian Reaction, imprisoned on 1 August, he was brought to trial in front of the Convention. His defense was that he had obeyed the decrees of the Committee of Public Safety and the Convention, It is not I who ought to be facing the tribunal. I had only acted in the spirit of the laws passed by a Convention invested with all powers, through the absence of its members, I find myself the head of a conspiracy I have never been aware of. Here I am facing slander, an always eager to find others responsible. After a trial lasting forty-one days, he was sentenced to death and guillotined on 7 May 1795, together with 15 former functionaries of the Revolutionary Tribunal, Fouquier-Tinville married his first wife, Geneviève-Dorothée Saugnier, with whom he would have five children, in 1775. He was widowed seven years later, four months after his wifes death, he married Henriette Jeanne Gérard dArcourt, with whom he would spend the rest of his life. Fouquier was played by Roger Planchon in Andrzej Wajdas film Danton, Public Prosecutor in the opera Andrea Chenier by Umberto Giordano This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Fouquier-Tinville, Antoine Quentin. In turn, it cites as references, Mémoire pour A. Q, Fouquier ex-accusateur public près le tribunal révolutionnaire, etc. M. i. Nos. 4445-4454, an ennumeration of the documents relating to Fouquier-Tinvilles trial Henri Wallon, Histoire du tribunal révolutionnaire de Paris Fouquier-Tinville, Antoine Quentin

Antoine Quentin Fouquier-Tinville
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Prosecutor during the Reign of Terror

16.
French Revolution
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Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, the causes of the French Revolution are complex and are still debated among historians. Following the Seven Years War and the American Revolutionary War, the French government was deeply in debt, Years of bad harvests leading up to the Revolution also inflamed popular resentment of the privileges enjoyed by the clergy and the aristocracy. Demands for change were formulated in terms of Enlightenment ideals and contributed to the convocation of the Estates-General in May 1789, a central event of the first stage, in August 1789, was the abolition of feudalism and the old rules and privileges left over from the Ancien Régime. The next few years featured political struggles between various liberal assemblies and right-wing supporters of the intent on thwarting major reforms. The Republic was proclaimed in September 1792 after the French victory at Valmy, in a momentous event that led to international condemnation, Louis XVI was executed in January 1793. External threats closely shaped the course of the Revolution, internally, popular agitation radicalised the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins. Large numbers of civilians were executed by revolutionary tribunals during the Terror, after the Thermidorian Reaction, an executive council known as the Directory assumed control of the French state in 1795. The rule of the Directory was characterised by suspended elections, debt repudiations, financial instability, persecutions against the Catholic clergy, dogged by charges of corruption, the Directory collapsed in a coup led by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the French Revolution, almost all future revolutionary movements looked back to the Revolution as their predecessor. The values and institutions of the Revolution dominate French politics to this day, the French Revolution differed from other revolutions in being not merely national, for it aimed at benefiting all humanity. Globally, the Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies and it became the focal point for the development of all modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, socialism, feminism, and secularism, among many others. The Revolution also witnessed the birth of total war by organising the resources of France, historians have pointed to many events and factors within the Ancien Régime that led to the Revolution. Over the course of the 18th century, there emerged what the philosopher Jürgen Habermas called the idea of the sphere in France. A perfect example would be the Palace of Versailles which was meant to overwhelm the senses of the visitor and convince one of the greatness of the French state and Louis XIV. Starting in the early 18th century saw the appearance of the sphere which was critical in that both sides were active. In France, the emergence of the public sphere outside of the control of the saw the shift from Versailles to Paris as the cultural capital of France. In the 1750s, during the querelle des bouffons over the question of the quality of Italian vs, in 1782, Louis-Sébastien Mercier wrote, The word court no longer inspires awe amongst us as in the time of Louis XIV

French Revolution
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The August Insurrection in 1792 precipitated the last days of the monarchy.
French Revolution
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The French government faced a fiscal crisis in the 1780s, and King Louis XVI was blamed for mishandling these affairs.
French Revolution
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Caricature of the Third Estate carrying the First Estate (clergy) and the Second Estate (nobility) on its back.
French Revolution
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The meeting of the Estates General on 5 May 1789 at Versailles.

17.
Causes of the French Revolution
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Financial, Frances debt, aggravated by French involvement in the American Revolution, led Louis XVI to implement new taxations and to reduce privileges. Political, Louis XVI faced virulent opposition from provincial parlements which were the spearheads of the privileged classes resistance to royal reforms, economic, The deregulation of the grain market, advocated by liberal economists, resulted in an increase in bread prices. In period of bad harvests, it would lead to food scarcity which would prompt the masses to revolt, all these factors created a revolutionary atmosphere and a tricky situation for Louis XVI. The essence of the situation which existed in France in the 1780s was the bankruptcy of the king. This economic crisis was due to the increasing costs of government. These costs could not be met from the sources of state revenue. Since the 1770s, several attempts by different ministers to introduce financial stability had failed, the taxation system was burdensome upon the middle class and the more prosperous peasants, given that the nobles were largely able to exempt themselves from it. As a result, there was an insistent demand for reform of abuses of privilege, for an equitable means of taxation. The population of France in the 1780s was about 26 million, few of these owned enough land to support a family and most were forced to take on extra work as poorly paid labourers on larger farms. There were regional differences but, by and large, French peasants were better off than those in countries like Russia or Poland. Even so, hunger was a problem which became critical in years of poor harvest. The clergy numbered about 100,000 and yet they owned 10% of the land, the Catholic Church maintained a rigid hierarchy as abbots and bishops were all members of the nobility and canons were all members of wealthy bourgeois families. As an institution, it was rich and powerful. As with the nobility, it paid no taxes and merely contributed a grant to the state five years. The upper echelons of the clergy had considerable influence over government policy, dislike of the nobility was especially intense. The American Revolution demonstrated that it was plausible for Enlightenment ideas about how a government should be organized to actually be put into practice. Some American diplomats, like Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, had lived in Paris, furthermore, contact between American revolutionaries and the French troops who served in North America helped spread revolutionary ideas to the French people. France in 1787, although it faced difficulties, was one of the most economically capable nations of Europe

Causes of the French Revolution
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The Third Estate (commoners) carrying the First (clergy) and Second Estate (nobility) on his back.
Causes of the French Revolution
Causes of the French Revolution
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Jacques Necker
Causes of the French Revolution
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Hôtel de la gabelle (House of the Salt Tax) in Bernay, Eure, Upper Normandy, built in 1750 by Bréant and Ange-Jacques Gabriel.

18.
French First Republic
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In the history of France, the First Republic, officially the French Republic, was founded on 21 September 1792 during the French Revolution. The First Republic lasted until the declaration of the First Empire in 1804 under Napoleon, under the Legislative Assembly, which was in power before the proclamation of the First Republic, France was engaged in war with Prussia and Austria. The foreign threat exacerbated Frances political turmoil amid the French Revolution and deepened the passion, in the violence of 10 August 1792, citizens stormed the Tuileries Palace, killing six hundred of the Kings Swiss guards and insisting on the removal of the king. A renewed fear of action prompted further violence, and in the first week of September 1792, mobs of Parisians broke into the citys prisons. This included nobles, clergymen, and political prisoners, but also numerous common criminals, such as prostitutes and petty thieves, many murdered in their cells—raped, stabbed and this became known as the September Massacres. The resulting Convention was founded with the purpose of abolishing the monarchy. The Conventions first act, on 10 August 1792, was to establish the French First Republic, the King, by then a private citizen bearing his family name of Capet, was subsequently put on trial for crimes of high treason starting in December 1792. On 16 January 1793 he was convicted, and on 21 January, throughout the winter of 1792 and spring of 1793, Paris was plagued by food riots and mass hunger. The new Convention did little to remedy the problem until late spring of 1793, despite growing discontent with the National Convention as a ruling body, in June the Convention drafted the Constitution of 1793, which was ratified by popular vote in early August. The Committees laws and policies took the revolution to unprecedented heights, after the arrest and execution of Robespierre in July 1794, the Jacobin club was closed, and the surviving Girondins were reinstated. A year later, the National Convention adopted the Constitution of the Year III and they reestablished freedom of worship, began releasing large numbers of prisoners, and most importantly, initiated elections for a new legislative body. On 3 November 1795, the Directory was established, the period known as the French Consulate began with the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799. Members of the Directory itself planned the coup, indicating clearly the failing power of the Directory, Napoleon Bonaparte was a co-conspirator in the coup, and became head of the government as the First Consul. He would later proclaim himself Emperor of the French, ending the First French Republic and ushering in the French First Empire

French First Republic
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Napoleon Bonaparte seizes power during the Coup of 18 Brumaire
French First Republic
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Flag

19.
French Directory
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It gave its name to the final four years of the French Revolution. The Directory was continually at war with foreign coalitions which at different times included Britain, Austria, Prussia, the Kingdom of Naples, Russia and it annexed Belgium and the left bank of the Rhine, while Bonaparte conquered a large part of Italy. The Directory established six short-lived sister republics modelled after France, in Italy, Switzerland, the conquered cities and states were required to send to France huge amounts of money, as well as art treasures, which were used to fill the new Louvre museum in Paris. An army led by Bonaparte conquered Egypt and marched as far as Saint-Jean-dAcre in Syria, the French economy was in continual crisis during the Directory. At the beginning, the treasury was empty, the money, the Assignat, had fallen to a fraction of its value. The Directory stopped printing assignats and restored the value of the money, but this caused a new crisis, prices and wages fell, and economic activity slowed to a standstill. The Jacobin political club was closed and the government crushed an uprising planned by the Jacobins. The Jacobins took two seats in the Directory, hopelessly dividing it. In 1799, after several defeats, French victories in the Netherlands and Switzerland restored the French military position, Bonaparte returned from Egypt in October, and was engaged by the Abbé Sieyès and other moderates to carry out a parliamentary coup détat on 8–9 November 1799. The coup abolished the Directory, put the French Consulate led by Bonaparte in its place, Robespierre and his leading followers were declared outside the law, and on 28 July were arrested, and guillotined the same day. The Terror quickly came to a halt, the Revolutionary Tribunal, which had sent thousands to the guillotine, ceased meeting and its head, Fouquier-Tinville, was arrested and imprisoned, and after trial was himself guillotined. More than five hundred suspected counter-revolutionaries awaiting trial and execution were immediately released, in the wake of these events, the members of the Convention began planning an entirely new form of government. They wished to continue the Revolution, but without its excesses and this executive will have a force concentrated enough that it will be swift and firm, but divided enough to make it impossible for any member to even consider becoming a tyrant. A single chief would be dangerous, each member will preside for three months, he will have during this time the signature and seal of the head of state. By the slow and gradual replacement of members of the Directory, you will preserve the advantages of order and continuity and will have the advantages of unity without the inconveniences. To assure that the Directors would have some independence, each would be elected by one portion of the legislature, the members of this legislature had a term of three years, with one-third of the members renewed every year. The Ancients could not initiate new laws, but could veto those proposed by the Council of Five Hundred, the new Constitution required the Council of 500 to prepare, by secret ballot, a list of candidates for the Directory. The Council of the Ancients then chose, again by secret ballot, the Constitution required that Directors be at least forty years old

French Directory
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Paul Barras, the only Director to serve during the entire term of the Directory
French Directory
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The War in the Vendée was a royalist uprising that was suppressed by the republican forces in 1796.
French Directory
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Lucien Bonaparte, President of the Council of 500, who engineered the coup that brought his brother to power.
French Directory
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First Republic (1792–1804)

20.
French Consulate
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The Consulate was the government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804. By extension, the term The Consulate also refers to period of French history. Due to the institutions established during these years, Robert B. Holtman has called the Consulate one of the most important periods of all French history, Napoleon brought authoritarian personal rule which has been viewed as military dictatorship. French military disasters in 1798 and 1799 had shaken the Directory, an irregularity emerged in the election of Jean Baptiste Treilhard, who retired in favor of Louis Jérôme Gohier. Within days, Philippe-Antoine Merlin and Louis-Marie de La Revellière were driven to resign, Baron Jean-François-Auguste Moulin, the three new directors were generally seen as non-entities. A few more military disasters, royalist insurrections in the south, Chouan disturbances in a dozen departments of the part of France, Orléanist intrigues. In order to soothe the populace and protect the frontier, more than the French Revolutions usual terrorist measures was necessary, the new Directory government, led by Sieyès, decided that the necessary revision of the constitution would require a head and a sword. Jean Victor Moreau being unattainable as his sword, Sieyès favoured Barthélemy Catherine Joubert, but, success was reserved for Bonaparte, suddenly landing at Fréjus with the prestige of his victories in the East, and now, after Hoches death, appearing as sole master of the armies. In the coup of 18 Brumaire Year VIII, Napoleon seized French parliamentary and military power in a two-fold coup détat, the initial 18 Brumaire coup seemed to be a victory for Sieyès, rather than for Bonaparte. Sieyès was a proponent of a new system of government for the Republic, Bonapartes cleverness lay in counterposing Pierre Claude François Daunous plan to that of Sieyès, and in retaining only those portions of both which could serve his ambition. Ultimate executive authority was vested in three consuls, who were elected for ten years, popular suffrage was retained, though mutilated by the lists of notables. Napoleon vetoed Sieyès original idea of having a single Grand Elector as supreme executive, Sieyès had intended to reserve this important position for himself, and by denying him the job Napoleon helped reinforce the authority of the consuls, an office which he would assume. Nor was Napoleon content simply to be part of an equal triumvirate, by consolidating power, Bonaparte was able to transform the aristocratic constitution of Sieyès into an unavowed dictatorship. On 7 February 1800, a referendum confirmed the new constitution. It vested all of the power in the hands of the First Consul. A full 99. 9% of voters approved the motion, according to the released results and he gave everyone a feeling that France was governed once more by a real statesman, and that a competent government was finally in charge. Bonaparte had now to rid himself of Sieyès and of those republicans who had no desire to hand over the republic to one man, particularly of Moreau and Masséna, his military rivals

21.
Day of the Tiles
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The Day of the Tiles is an event that took place in the French town of Grenoble on the 7th of June in 1788. It was one of the first disturbances which preceded the French Revolution, Grenoble was the scene of popular unrest due to financial hardship from the economic crises. The causes of the French Revolution affected all of France, tensions in urban populations had been rising already due to poor harvests and the high cost of bread in France. These tensions were exacerbated by the refusal of the classes, the Church. They insisted on retaining the right to collect feudal and seignorial royalties from their peasants and this acted to block reforms attempted by the kings minister Charles Alexandre de Calonne and the Assembly of Notables that he convoked in January 1787. Added to this, Brienne, appointed the kings Controller-General of Finance on 8 April 1787, was regarded as being a manager without experience or imagination. Shortly prior to the 7th of June in 1788, in a meeting at Grenoble those who attended the meeting decided to call together the old Estates of the province of Dauphiné. The government responded by sending troops to the area to put down the movement. At roughly 10 in the morning of Saturday, June 7, merchants closed down their shops as groups of 300 to 400 men and women formed, armed with stones, sticks, axes, bars. They rushed to the city gates to prevent the departure of judges who took part in the Gernoble meeting, some rioters attempted to cross the Isère but faced a picket of 50 soldiers at the St. Lawrence bridge, while others headed to the Rue Neuve. The cathedral’s bells were seized by French peasants at noon, the crowd swiftly grew, as the bells provoked the influx of neighboring peasants to creep in the city, climbing the walls, using boats on the Isere and for some, pushing open the city gates. Other insurgents boarded the ramparts and rushed to the hotel the Duke of Clermont-Tonnerre was staying in at the time. The Duke had two regiments in Grenoble, the Regiment of the Royal Navy whose colonel was Marquis dAmbert. The Royal Navy was the first to respond to the growing crowds, however, as the mob stormed the hotel entrance, the situation escalated. Soldiers sent to quell the disturbances forced the townspeople off the streets, some sources say that the soldiers were sent to disperse parliamentarians who were attempting to assemble a parlement. During an attack, Royal Navy soldiers injured a 75 year old man with a bayonet, at the sight of blood, the people became angry and started to tear up the streets. Townspeople climbed onto the roofs of buildings around the Jesuit College to hurl down a rain of roof-tiles on the soldiers in the streets below, many soldiers took refuge in a building to shoot through the windows, while the crowd continued to rush inside and ravage everything. A noncommissioned officer of the Royal Navy, commanding a patrol of four soldiers, one civilian was killed and a boy of 12 wounded

22.
Assembly of Vizille
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The Assembly of Vizille was the result of a meeting of various representatives in Grenoble. Its purpose was to discuss the events of The Day Of The Tiles, on 7 June 1788, riots broke out all over the town of Grenoble. Soldiers sent to quell the disturbances forced the townspeople off the streets, some sources say that the soldiers were sent to disperse parliamentarians, who were attempting to assemble a parliament. However, the townspeople climbed onto the roofs of buildings, hurling roof-tiles at the soldiers in the streets below and this drove royal troops out of the city in the first outbreak of political violence that became the revolution. Almost 500 men gathered that day at the banquet hosted by Claude, in attendance there were many notables including churchmen, businessmen, doctors, notaries, municipal officials, lawyers, and landed nobility. Demanded at this meeting, the Convocation in Paris of an Estates-General and this meeting marked the first portion of the French Revolution. Opposition to absolutist monarchy finally came out into the open, with increasing support for its demands, culminating in the meeting of the Estates General

23.
Estates-General of 1789
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The estates general, a general assembly representing the French estates of the realm, the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. It was brought to an end when the Third Estate formed into a National Assembly and this signals the outbreak of the French Revolution. The suggestion to summon the Estates General came from the Assembly of Notables installed by the King on 22 February 1787 and it had not met since 1614. The usual business of registering the Kings edicts as law was performed by the Parlement of Paris, in this year it was refusing to cooperate with Charles Alexandre de Calonnes programme of badly needed financial reform, due to the special interests of its noble members. Calonne was the Controller-General of Finances, appointed by the King to address the state deficit, as a last measure, Calonne was hoping to bypass them by reviving an archaic institution. The initial roster of Notables included 137 nobles, among them many revolutionaries, such as the Comte de Mirabeau. Lafayette had served in George Washingtons army, much of the debt had been incurred on behalf of the Americans. The final defeat of Lord Cornwallis at the Battle of Yorktown was due in part to the participation of the French army. If Calonne thought he would find more cooperation by changing the assembly and he proposed a land tax, Subvention Territoriale, to be imposed on all land-holders, rich or poor. Calonne was dismissed on 8 April 1787, and then was exiled and he commented on the French political scene from London. Calonnes replacement was Étienne Charles de Loménie de Brienne, President of the Assembly of Notables and he was offered the post of Prime Minister, which was to include being Controller. They made a number of proposals but they would not grant the King money, Lafayette suggested that the problem required a national assembly. Brienne asked him if he meant the Estates General, on receiving an affirmative answer, Brienne recorded it as a proposal. Frustrated by his inability to obtain money, the King staged a day-long harangue and their proposals reverted to the Parlement. Turning again to the Parliament, the King found that they were inclined to continue the issues that had raised in the Assembly of Notables. Unless registered, the edicts were not lawful, on 6 July 1787, Loménie forwarded the Subvention Territoriale and another tax, the Edit du Timbre, or Stamp Act, based on the American model, for registration. Parlement refused, an act, demanding accounting statements, or States. It was the Kings turn to refuse, the members of the Parlement began to jest that they required either the accounting States or the Estates General

Estates-General of 1789
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Engraving by Isidore-Stanislaus Helman (1743-1806) following a sketch by Charles Monnet (1732-1808). The title is L'Ouverture des États Généraux à Versailles le 5 Mai 1789, "Opening of the Estates-General in Versailles 5 May 1789." It was one of a series by Helman: Principales Journées de la Révolution.
Estates-General of 1789
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Painting by Auguste Couder showing the opening of the Estates-General

24.
National Assembly (French Revolution)
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The Estates-General had been called on Dec 4,1789 to deal with Frances financial crisis, but promptly fell to squabbling over its own structure. Its members had elected to represent the estates of the realm, the 1st Estate, the 2nd Estate. They refused this and proceeded to meet separately, on June 13, this group began to call itself the National Assembly. This newly created assembly immediately attached itself onto the capitalists — the sources of the credit needed to fund the national debt — and to the common people. They consolidated the public debt and declared all existing taxes to have been illegally imposed and this restored the confidence of the capitalists and gave them a strong interest in keeping the Assembly in session. As for the people, the Assembly established a committee of subsistence to deal with food shortages. Jacques Necker, finance minister to Louis XVI, had proposed that the king hold a Séance Royale in an attempt to reconcile the divided Estates. The king agreed, but none of the three orders were formally notified of the decision to hold a Royal Session, all debates were to be put on hold until the séance royale took place. Events soon overtook Neckers complex scheme of giving in to the Communes on some points while holding firm on others. On June 19, he ordered the Salle des États, the hall where the National Assembly met, closed, when, on June 23, in accord with his plan, the king finally addressed the representatives of all three estates, he encountered a stony silence. He concluded by ordering all to disperse, the nobles and clergy obeyed, the deputies of the common people remained seated in a silence finally broken by Mirabeau, whose short speech culminated, A military force surrounds the assembly. Where are the enemies of the nation, I demand, investing yourselves with your dignity, with your legislative power, you inclose yourselves within the religion of your oath. It does not permit you to separate till you have formed a constitution, Necker, conspicuous by his absence from the royal party on that day, found himself in disgrace with Louis, but back in the good graces of the National Assembly. The French military began to arrive in numbers around Paris. This move failed, soon part of the deputies of the nobles who still stood apart joined the National Assembly at the request of the king. Louis offered to move the assembly to Noyon or Soissons, that is to say, public outrage over this troop presence precipitated the Storming of the Bastille, beginning the Revolution. This article incorporates text from the public domain History of the French Revolution from 1789 to 1814, by François Mignet and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. French Revolution. Http, //www. assemblee-nationale. fr/english/8am. asp History of the National Assembly http, //www. saylor. org/site/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/National-Assembly-French-Revolution. pdf National Assembly

National Assembly (French Revolution)
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Tinted etching of Louis XVI of France, 1792, wearing a Phrygian cap. This caption refers to Louis's capitulation to the National Assembly, and concludes "The same Louis XVI who bravely waits until his fellow citizens return to their hearths to plan a secret war and exact his revenge."

25.
Tennis Court Oath
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It was a pivotal event in the early days of the French Revolution. On 17 June, the Third Estate, led by the comte de Mirabeau, on the morning of 20 June, the deputies were shocked to discover that the chamber door was locked and guarded by soldiers. There,576 of the 577 members from the Third Estate took an oath not to separate. The only person who did not join was Joseph Martin-Dauch from Castelnaudary and this oath would come to have major significance in the revolution as the Third Estate would constantly continue to protest to have more representation. The oath was both an act, and an assertion that political authority derived from the people and their representatives rather than from the monarch himself. Their solidarity forced Louis XVI to order the clergy and the nobility to join with the Third Estate in the National Assembly in order to give the illusion that he controlled the National Assembly. This oath would prove vital to the Third Estate as a step of protest that would lead to more power in the Estates General. The Oath signified for the first time that French citizens formally stood in opposition to Louis XVI, and it was foreshadowed by, and drew considerably from, the 1776 United States Declaration of Independence, especially the preamble. The Oath also inspired a variety of revolutionary activity in the months afterwards. Likewise, it reinforced the Assemblys strength and forced the King to formally request that voting occur based on head, not power. The Tennis Court Oath, which was taken in June 1789, preceded the 4 August 1789 abolition of feudalism and the 26 August 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen

26.
Storming of the Bastille
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The Storming of the Bastille occurred in Paris, France, on the afternoon of 14 July 1789. The medieval fortress, armory, and political prison in Paris known as the Bastille represented royal authority in the center of Paris. The prison contained just seven inmates at the time of its storming but was a symbol of abuses by the monarchy, in France, Le quatorze juillet is a public holiday, usually called Bastille Day in English. During the reign of Louis XVI, France faced an economic crisis, partially initiated by the cost of intervening in the American Revolution. The king initially opposed this development, but was forced to acknowledge the authority of the assembly, which subsequently renamed itself the National Constituent Assembly on 9 July. The commoners had formed the National Guard, sporting tricolour cockades of blue, white and red, formed by combining the red and blue cockade of Paris and the white cockade of the king. These cockades, and soon simply their colour scheme, became the symbol of the revolution and, later, Paris, close to insurrection and, in François Mignets words, intoxicated with liberty and enthusiasm, showed wide support for the Assembly. The press published the Assemblys debates, political debate spread beyond the Assembly itself into the public squares, the Palais-Royal and its grounds became the site of an ongoing meeting. The Assembly recommended the imprisoned guardsmen to the clemency of the king, they returned to prison, the rank and file of the regiment, previously considered reliable, now leaned toward the popular cause. News of Neckers dismissal reached Paris in the afternoon of Sunday,12 July, the Parisians generally presumed that the dismissal marked the start of a coup by conservative elements. Crowds gathered throughout Paris, including more than ten thousand at the Palais-Royal and this very night all the Swiss and German battalions will leave the Champ de Mars to massacre us all, one resource is left, to take arms. By early July, approximately half of the 25,000 regular troops in Paris, the crowd clashed with the Royal German Cavalry Regiment between the Place Vendôme and the Tuileries Palace. From atop the Champs-Élysées, the Prince de Lambesc unleashed a cavalry charge that dispersed the protesters at Place Louis XV—now Place de la Concorde. The Royal commander, Baron de Besenval, fearing the results of a blood bath amongst the poorly armed crowds or defections among his own men, then withdrew the cavalry towards Sèvres. Meanwhile, unrest was growing among the people of Paris who expressed their hostility against state authorities by attacking customs posts blamed for causing increased food, the people of Paris started to plunder any place where food, guns and supplies could be hoarded. That night, rumors spread that supplies were being hoarded at Saint-Lazare, a property of the clergy. An angry mob broke in and plundered the property, seizing 52 wagons of wheat and that same day multitudes of people plundered many other places including weapon arsenals. The Royal troops did nothing to stop the spreading of chaos in Paris during those days

Storming of the Bastille
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Prise de la Bastille by Jean-Pierre Houël
Storming of the Bastille
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Jacques Necker (1732–1804), French minister of finance
Storming of the Bastille
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The Bastille of Paris before the Revolution.
Storming of the Bastille
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Engraving, c.1789: French soldiers or militia hoisting the heads of Flesselles and the marquis de Launay on pikes. The caption reads "Thus we take revenge on traitors".

27.
Parlement
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A parlement was a provincial appellate court in the France of the Ancien Régime, i. e. before the French Revolution. In 1789,13 parlements existed, the most important of which was by far the Parlement of Paris, while the English word parliament derives from this French term, parlements were not legislative bodies. They consisted of a dozen or more judges, or about 1,100 judges nationwide. They were the court of appeal of the judicial system. Laws and edicts issued by the Crown were not official in their respective jurisdictions until the parlements gave their assent by publishing them, the members were aristocrats called nobles of the gown who had bought or inherited their offices, and were independent of the King. From 1770 to 1774 the Lord Chancellor, Maupeou, tried to abolish the Parlement of Paris in order to strengthen the Crown, however, when King Louis XV died in 1774, the parlements were reinstated. The parlements spearheaded the resistance to the absolutism and centralization of the Crown, but they worked primarily for the benefit of their own class. Alfred Cobban argues that the parlements were the obstacles to any reform before the Revolution. In November 1789, early in the French Revolution, all parlements were suspended, the political institutions of the Parlement in Ancien Régime France developed out of the Kings Council, and consequently enjoyed ancient, customary consultative and deliberative prerogatives. In the 13th century, the parlements acquired judicial functions, then the droit de remontrance against the king, the Paris parlements jurisdiction covered the entire kingdom as it was in the 14th century, but did not automatically advance in step with the Crowns ever expanding realm. The Parlement of Paris played a role in stimulating the nobility to resist the expansion of royal power by military force in the Fronde. In the end, the King won out and the nobility was humiliated, in such a case, the parlements powers were suspended for the duration of this royal session. King Louis XIV moved to centralize authority into his own hands, in 1665, he ordained that a Lit de justice could be held without the king having to appear in person. In 1667, he limited the number of remonstrances to only one, in 1671–1673, however, the parlements resisted the taxes occasioned by the Dutch War. In 1673, the king imposed additional restrictions that stripped the parlements of any influence upon new laws by ordaining that remonstrances could only be issued after registration of the edicts. After Louis death in 1715, all the restrictions were discontinued by the regent and these locations were provincial capitals of those provinces with strong historical traditions of independence before they were annexed to France. Nevertheless, the Parlement of Paris had the largest jurisdiction of all the parlements, covering the part of northern and central France. In some regions provincial States-General also continued to meet and legislate with a measure of self-governance, tenure on the court was generally bought from the royal authority, and such positions could be made hereditary by payment of a tax to the King called la Paulette

Parlement
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Façade of the palace of Parlement of Brittany
Parlement
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Kingdom of France

28.
French nobility
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The French nobility was a privileged social class in France during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period to the revolution in 1790. The nobility was revived in 1805 with limited rights as an elite class from the First Empire to the fall of the July Monarchy in 1848. Hereditary titles, without privileges, continued to be granted until the Second Empire fell in 1870 and they survive among their descendants as a social convention and as part of the legal name of the corresponding individuals. In the political system of pre-Revolutionary France, the nobility made up the Second Estate of the Estates General, although membership in the noble class was mainly inherited, it was not a fully closed order. New individuals were appointed to the nobility by the monarchy, or they could purchase rights and titles, sources differ about the actual number of nobles in France, however, proportionally, it was among the smallest noble classes in Europe. For the year 1789, French historian François Bluche gives a figure of 140,000 nobles and states that about 5% of nobles could claim descent from feudal nobility before the 15th century, with a total population of 28 million, this would represent merely 0. 5%. Historian Gordon Wright gives a figure of 300,000 nobles, in terms of land holdings, at the time of the revolution, noble estates comprised about one-fifth of the land. The French nobility had specific legal and financial rights and prerogatives, the first official list of these prerogatives was established relatively late, under Louis XI after 1440, and included the right to hunt, to wear a sword and, in principle, to possess a seigneurie. Nobles were also granted an exemption from paying the taille, except for lands they might possess in some regions of France. Furthermore, certain ecclesiastic, civic, and military positions were reserved for nobles and these feudal privileges are often termed droits de féodalité dominante. With the exception of a few isolated cases, serfdom had ceased to exist in France by the 15th century, in early modern France, nobles nevertheless maintained a great number of seigneurial privileges over the free peasants that worked lands under their control. They could, for example, levy the tax, an annual tax on lands leased or held by vassals. Nobles could also charge banalités for the right to use the lords mills, ovens, alternatively, a noble could demand a portion of vassals harvests in return for permission to farm land he owned. In the 17th century this system was established in Frances North American possessions. However, the also had responsibilities. Nobles were required to honor, serve, and counsel their king and they were often required to render military service. The rank of noble was forfeitable, certain activities could cause dérogeance, most commercial and manual activities were strictly prohibited, although nobles could profit from their lands by operating mines and forges. The nobility in France was never a closed class

29.
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
–
The Civil Constitution of the Clergy was a law passed on 12 July 1790 during the French Revolution, that caused the immediate subordination of the Catholic Church in France to the French government. Earlier legislation had already arranged the confiscation of the Catholic Churchs French land holdings and this new law completed the destruction of the monastic orders, outlawing all regular and secular chapters for either sex, abbacies and priorships, both regular and in commendam, for either sex, etc. It also sought to settle the chaos caused by the confiscation of Church lands. Additionally, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy regulated the current dioceses so that they could become more uniform and it emphasised that officials of the church could not provide commitment to anything outside of France, specifically the Pope which was outside of France. Lastly, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy made Bishops and Priest elected, the measure was opposed, but ultimately acquiesced to, by King Louis XVI. The Civil Constitution of the Clergy document had 4 tittles with different articles, the document began with an introduction that introduced why the document was written. Title I focused on the dioceses and how they were to be administered, Title II focused on the administration of the dioceses and how elections were to take place. Title III focused on payment because the Clergy was an employee of the State. Title IV focused on the requirements for bishops, parish priests. Even before the Revolution and the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, even prior to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, On 11 August 1789 tithes were abolished. On 2 November 1789, Catholic Church property that was held for purposes of church revenue was nationalized, on 13 February 1790, monastic vows were forbidden and all ecclesiastical orders and congregations were dissolved, excepting those devoted to teaching children and nursing the sick. On 19 April 1790, administration of all remaining property was transferred to the State. The Church owned about six percent of the land in France, in addition the Church collected tithes. Owing, in part, to abuses of this system, there was resentment of the Church, taking the various forms of atheism, anticlericalism. Many of the revolutionaries viewed the Catholic Church as a retrograde force, at the same time, there was enough support for a basically Catholic form of Christianity that some means had to be found to fund the Church in France. On 6 February 1790, one week before banning monastic vows, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy came before the Assembly on 29 May 1790. François de Bonal, Bishop of Clermont, and some members of the Right requested that the project should be submitted to a council or to the Pope. Joining them in their opposition to the legislation was Abbé Sieyès, one of the political theorists of the French Revolution

Civil Constitution of the Clergy
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A commemorative plate from 1790 shows a curate swearing the Constitution.
Civil Constitution of the Clergy
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In this caricature, after the decree of 16 February 1790, monks and nuns enjoy their new freedom.

30.
Flight to Varennes
–
They escaped only as far as the small town of Varennes, where they were arrested after having been recognized at their previous stop in Sainte-Menehould. The incident was a point after which popular hostility towards the French monarchy as an institution, as well as towards the king and queen as individuals. The kings attempted flight provoked charges of treason that ultimately led to his execution in 1793, the failure of the escape plans was due to a series of misadventures, delays, misinterpretations, and poor judgments. Much was due to the Kings indecision, he postponed the schedule. Furthermore, he misjudged popular support for the traditional monarchy and he thought that only radicals in Paris were promoting a revolution that the people as a whole rejected. He believed, mistakenly, that he was beloved by the rural peasants, the kings flight was traumatic for France, inciting a wave of emotions that ranged from anxiety to violence and panic. Everyone was aware that foreign intervention was imminent, republicanism, from being merely a subject of coffeehouse debate, suddenly became the dominant ideal of revolutionary leaders. Henceforth, the king seems to have become emotionally paralyzed, leaving most important decisions to the politically untrained queen, from the autumn of 1791 on, the king tied his hopes of political salvation to the dubious prospects of foreign intervention. Prompted by Marie Antoinette, Louis rejected the advice of the moderate constitutionalists, led by Antoine Barnave, to implement the Constitution of 1791. At Montmédy General François Claude de Bouillé, the marquis de Bouillé, had concentrated a force of 10,000 regulars of the old royal army who were considered to still be loyal to the monarchy. De Bouillé himself had shown energy in suppressing a mutiny in Nancy in 1790. The troops under his command included two Swiss and four German mercenary regiments who were perceived as being reliable in a time of general political unrest than their French counterparts. The long-term political objectives of the couple and their closest advisors remain unclear. Prodded by the queen, Louis committed himself and his family to an attempt of escape from the capital to the eastern frontier on 21 June 1791. The escape was planned by the queens favourite, the Swedish Count Axel von Fersen and the Baron de Breteuil. Fersen had urged the use of two light carriages that could have made the 200-mile journey to Montmédy relatively quickly. This would have involved the splitting up of the family, however, thus Louis and Marie-Antoinette decided on the use of a heavy. Detachments of cavalry posted along the route had been withdrawn or neutralized by suspicious crowds before the large

Flight to Varennes
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Louis XVI and his family, dressed as bourgeois, arrested in Varennes.
Flight to Varennes
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Jean-Baptiste Drouet, who recognised the royal family.
Flight to Varennes
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Drouet recognized the king thanks to his profile on coins and assignats.

31.
Champ de Mars Massacre
–
The Champ de Mars Massacre took place on 17 July 1791 in Paris in the midst of the French Revolution. The event is named after the site of the massacre, the Champ de Mars, two days before, the National Constituent Assembly issued a decree that the king, Louis XVI, would remain king under a constitutional monarchy. This decision came after King Louis XVI and his family had tried to flee France in the Flight to Varennes the month before. Later that day, leaders of the republicans in France rallied against this decision, jacques Pierre Brissot, editor and main writer of Le Patriote français and president of the Comité des Recherches of Paris, drew up a petition demanding the removal of the king. A crowd of 50,000 people gathered at the Champ de Mars on July 17 to sign the petition, jean Sylvain Bailly, the mayor of Paris, used this incident to declare martial law. The Marquis de Lafayette and the National Guard, which was under his command, were able to disperse the crowd, later in the afternoon, the crowd, led by Danton and Camille Desmoulins, returned in even greater numbers. The larger crowd was more determined than the first. Lafayette again tried to disperse it, in retaliation, the crowd threw stones at the National Guard. After firing unsuccessful warning shots, the National Guard opened fire directly on the crowd, the exact numbers of dead and wounded are unknown, estimates range from a dozen to fifty dead. When Louis XVI and his family fled to Varennes, it set off political turmoil, earlier, information had been received by the assembly that there was potentially a plan for the king to flee. The idea that Louis planned on fleeing the Tuileries palace began in early 1791 and was one of the causes of the Day of Daggers on 28 February 1791. The escape event was not subtly planned, and enough suspicions were aroused in those working in the palace that the information trickled down to newspapers. The Marquis de Lafayette promised on his own life such a thing was not true. Lafayette and the Assembly created a lie that the king had been kidnapped, ultimately the king and his family were brought back and the assembly decided that he needed to be a part of the government if he agreed to consent to the constitution. At the time of the massacre, divisions within the Third Estate had already began to grow, many workers were already angered by the closing of various workshops, which took away jobs, leaving some unemployed. Higher skilled journeymen were also angered due to a lack of increase in wages since the beginning of the Revolution, the attempted flight of the King only increased the tensions between groups. The massacre was the result of various factions reacting to the decree by the Constituent Assembly in different ways. The Cordeliers Club, a populist group, chose to create a petition for a protest and this was originally backed by the Jacobins, though support was withdrawn at Robespierres suggestion

Champ de Mars Massacre
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Lafayette orders his troops to fire

32.
Declaration of Pillnitz
–
It declared the joint support of the Holy Roman Empire and of Prussia for King Louis XVI of France against the French Revolution. At the same time, many French aristocrats were fleeing France and taking up residence in neighbouring countries, spreading fear of the Revolution, after the Flight to Varennes in June 1791, Louis had been arrested and was imprisoned. On 6 July 1791, Leopold issued the Padua Circular, calling on the sovereigns of Europe to join him in demanding Louis freedom, the declaration stated that Austria would go to war if and only if all the other major European powers also went to war with France. Leopold chose this wording so that he would not be forced to go to war, he knew the British prime minister, Leopold issued the declaration only to satisfy the French emigres who had taken refuge in his country and were calling for foreign interference in their homeland. In that case, aforementioned Majesties are determined to act promptly and unanimously, with the necessary for realizing the proposed. In expectation, they give the suitable orders to their troups so that they will be ready to commence activity. The National Assembly of France interpreted the declaration to mean that Leopold was going to declare war, media related to Declaration of Pillnitz at Wikimedia Commons Pillnitzer Punktation auf EPOCHE NAPOLEON in German. Declaration of Pillnitz audio episode at Warsofcoalition. com

33.
French Constitution of 1791
–
The short-lived French Constitution of 1791 was the first written constitution in France, created after the collapse of the absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime. One of the precepts of the revolution was adopting constitutionality. The National Assembly began the process of drafting a constitution, the Declaration of the Rights of Man, adopted on 27 August 1789 eventually became the preamble of the constitution adopted on 3 September 1791. The Declaration offered sweeping generalizations about rights, liberty, and sovereignty, a twelve-member Constitutional Committee was convened on 14 July 1789. Its task was to do much of the drafting of the articles of the constitution and it included originally two members from the First Estate, two from the Second, and four from the Third. Many proposals for redefining the French state were floated, particularly in the days after the sessions of 4–5 August 1789. The main controversies early on surrounded the issues of what level of power to be granted to the king of France and their greatest controversy faced by this new committee surrounded the issue of citizenship. Would every subject of the French Crown be given equal rights, as the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen seemed to promise, the October Days intervened and rendered the question much more complicated. In the end, a distinction was held between active citizens which had rights, and passive citizens, who had only civil rights. This conclusion was intolerable to such radical deputies as Maximilien Robespierre, a second body, the Committee of Revisions, was struck September 1790, and included Antoine Barnave, Adrien Duport, and Charles de Lameth. Because the National Assembly was both a legislature and a convention, it was not always clear when its decrees were constitutional articles or mere statutes. It was the job of this committee to sort it out, after very long negotiations, the constitution was reluctantly accepted by King Louis XVI in September 1791. Redefining the organization of the French government, citizenship and the limits to the powers of government and it abolished many “institutions which were injurious to liberty and equality of rights”. The National Assembly asserted its legal presence in French government by establishing its permanence in the Constitution, the Assemblys belief in a sovereign nation and in equal representation can be seen in the constitutional separation of powers. The National Assembly was the body, the king and royal ministers made up the executive branch. By the same token, representative democracy weakened the executive authority. The constitution was not egalitarian by todays standards and it distinguished between the propertied active citizens and the poorer passive citizens. Women lacked rights to such as education, freedom to speak, write, print

French Constitution of 1791
–
French Constitution of 1791

34.
Legislative Assembly (France)
–
The Legislative Assembly was the legislature of France from 1 October 1791 to 20 September 1792 during the years of the French Revolution. It provided the focus of debate and revolutionary law-making between the periods of the National Constituent Assembly and of the National Convention. The National Constituent Assembly dissolved itself on 30 September 1791, upon Robespierres motion it had decreed that none of its members would be eligible to the next legislature. The Legislative Assembly entrenched the perceived left-right political spectrum that is commonly used today. The elections of 1791, held by franchise, brought in a legislature that desired to carry the Revolution further. Prominent in the legislature were the Jacobin Club and its affiliated societies throughout France, the Legislative Assembly first met on 1 October 1791. It consisted of 745 members, mostly from the middle class, the members were generally young, and since none had sat in the previous Assembly, they largely lacked national political experience. They tended to be people who had made their name through successful political careers in local politics and they were staunch constitutional monarchists, firm in their defence of the King against the popular agitation. The leftists were of 136 Jacobins and Cordeliers and its most famous leaders were Jacques Pierre Brissot, the philosopher Condorcet, and Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud. The Left drew its inspiration from the radical tendency of the Enlightenment, regarded the émigré nobles as traitors. They were suspicious of Louis XVI, some of them favoring a general European war, the remainder of the House,345 deputies, generally belonged to no definite party. They were called the Marsh or the Plain and they were committed to the ideals of the Revolution, hence generally inclined to side with the Left but would also occasionally back proposals from the Right. The kings ministers, named by him and excluded from the Assembly, are described by the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica as mostly persons of little mark. For a detailed description of the proceedings of the Legislative Assembly and related events, see The Legislative Assembly, the 27 August 1791 Declaration of Pillnitz already threatened France with attack by its neighbors. King Louis XVI favored war hoping to exploit a military defeat to restore his absolute power and this led in April 1792 to the first of the French Revolutionary Wars. Louis vetoed the decree as a matter of conscience, Louis XVI formed a series of cabinets, veering at times as far left as the Girondins. However, by the summer of 1792, amid war and insurrection, it had become clear that the monarchy, on 11 July 1792, the Assembly formally declared the Nation in danger because of the dire military situation. On 9 August 1792, a new revolutionary Commune took possession of Hôtel de Ville, and early on the morning of 10 August, the insurgents assailed the Tuileries, Louis and his family sought asylum with the Legislative Assembly

35.
War of the First Coalition
–
France declared war on the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792. In July 1792, an army under the Duke of Brunswick and composed mostly of Prussians joined the Austrian side and invaded France, France suffered reverses and internal strife and responded with draconian measures. The Committee of Public Safety formed and the en masse drafted all potential soldiers aged 18 to 25. The new French armies counterattacked, repelled the invaders, and advanced beyond France, the French established the Batavian Republic as a sister republic and gained Prussian recognition of French control of the Left Bank of the Rhine by the first Peace of Basel. With the Treaty of Campo Formio, the Holy Roman Empire ceded the Austrian Netherlands to France, Spain made a separate peace accord with France and the French Directory carried out plans to conquer more of the Holy Roman Empire. The First Coalition collapsed, leaving only Britain in the fighting against France. The key figure, the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, brother to the French Queen Marie Antoinette, had looked on the Revolution calmly. He became more concerned as the Revolution grew further radical, although he hoped to avoid war. Dumouriez prepared an invasion of the Austrian Netherlands, where he expected the population to rise against Austrian rule. However, the revolution had thoroughly disorganized the French army, which had insufficient forces for the invasion and its soldiers fled at the first sign of battle, deserting en masse, in one case murdering General Théobald Dillon. While the revolutionary government frantically raised fresh troops and reorganized its armies, in July 1792 the invasion commenced. Brunswicks army, composed mostly of Prussian veterans, took the fortresses of Longwy, although the battle was a tactical draw, it bought time for the revolutionaries and gave a great boost to French morale. Dumouriez went on the offensive in Belgium once again, winning a victory over the Austrians at Jemappes on 6 November 1792. On 21 January the revolutionary government executed Louis XVI after a trial and this united all European governments, including Spain, Naples, and the Netherlands against the Revolution. France declared war against Britain and the Netherlands on 1 February 1793, in the course of the year 1793 the Holy Roman Empire, the kings of Portugal and Naples, and the Grand-Duke of Tuscany declared war against France. Thus the First Coalition was formed, the French government sent Citizen Genet to the United States to encourage them into entering the war on Frances side. The newly formed nation refused and remained throughout the conflict. After a victory in the Battle of Neerwinden in March, the Austrians suffered twin defeats at the battles of Wattignies, British land forces were defeated at the Battle of Hondschoote in September

War of the First Coalition
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The Battle of Valmy was a decisive victory for the French revolutionary army.
War of the First Coalition
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The British evacuation of Toulon in December 1793
War of the First Coalition
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The Glorious First of June, 1 June 1794
War of the First Coalition
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Strategic situation in Europe in 1796

36.
Brunswick Manifesto
–
The Brunswick Manifesto threatened that if the French royal family were harmed, then French civilians would be harmed. On 20 April 1792, Revolutionary France declared war on Austria, later, on 28 April, France invaded the Austrian Netherlands. Prussia joined the war against France, and on 30 July Austria and Prussia began an invasion of France, on 25 July, the Duke of Brunswick issued the Brunswick Manifesto. The manifesto promised that if the French Royal family was not harmed, however, if acts of violence or acts to humiliate the French Royal family were committed, the Allies threatened to burn Paris to the ground. The manifesto was written primarily by Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé, the leader of a corps of French émigrés in Brunswicks army. On August 1 news of the manifesto began sweeping through Paris, many believed the Brunswick Manifesto was final proof that Louis XVI was collaborating with the Allies. Also on August 1, Prussian forces crossed the Rhine near Coblenz, consequently, in late August and early September, the French were defeated in skirmishes with the Allied army, but on 20 September the French triumphed in the Battle of Valmy. Following its defeat, the Prussian army withdrew from France, recent research, however, argues that the Brunswick Manifesto did not have nearly the impact upon the revolutionaries suggested in earlier source material. Lastly, the French refused to take the Brunswick Manifesto seriously in any respect and this determination stemmed from what they believed to be its illegality, disrespect for the law of war, and denial of national sovereignty. War of the First Coalition House of Bourbon The Proclamation of the Duke of Brunswick,1792 Connelly, the wars of the French Revolution and Napoleon, 1792–1815. The Myth of the Foreign Enemy, the Brunswick Manifesto and the Radicalization of the French Revolution. The Oxford History of the French Revolution, the empire of the French, a chronology of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars 1792–1815

Brunswick Manifesto
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Anonymous caricature depicting the treatment given to the Brunswick Manifesto by the French population

37.
Paris Commune (French Revolution)
–
The Paris Commune during the French Revolution was the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just after the storming of the Bastille, the Paris Commune became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, essentially refusing to take orders from the central French government. It took charge of routine civic functions but is best known for mobilizing extreme views and actions among the people and for its campaign to dechristianize the churches and it lost much power in 1794 and was replaced in 1795. In 1792, the Commune was dominated by those Jacobins who were not in the Legislative Assembly due to the Self-Denying Ordinance, the all-powerful Commune demanded custody of the royal family, imprisoning them in the Temple fortress. A list of opponents of the Revolution was drawn up, the gates to the city were sealed, the government of the republic was succeeded by the French Directory in November 1795

38.
10 August (French Revolution)
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The Insurrection of 10 August 1792 was one of the defining events in the history of the French Revolution. The storming of the Tuileries Palace by the National Guard of the insurrectional Paris Commune and revolutionary fédérés from Marseilles, King Louis XVI and the royal family took shelter with the Legislative Assembly, which was suspended. The formal end of the monarchy that occurred six weeks later was one of the first acts of the new National Convention, the war declared on 20 April 1792 against the King of Bohemia and Hungary started badly. The initial battles were a disaster for the French, and Prussia joined Austria in active alliance against France, the blame for the disaster was thrown first upon the king and his ministers, and secondly upon the Girondin party. The King vetoed the decrees and dismissed Girondins from the Ministry, events came to a head on 16 June when Lafayette sent a letter to the Assembly, recommending the suppression of the anarchists and political clubs in the capital. The Kings veto of the Legislative Assemblys decrees was published on 19 June, the popular journée of 20 June 1792 was organized to put pressure on the King. The King, appearing before the crowd, put on the bonnet rouge of liberty and drank to the health of the nation and it was a brave but belated gesture. It could do nothing against the universal distrust in which the hero of 89 was now held, the deputies indicted the general for deserting his command. The king rejected all suggestions of escape from the man who had so long presided over his imprisonment, the crowd burnt him in effigy in the Palais-Royal. There was no place for such as Lafayette beside that republican emblem, within six weeks he was arrested whilst in flight to England, and immured in an Austrian prison. He failed because it clashed with national sentiment, the inaction in which he had kept the armies for more than 2 months past seemed inexplicable. It had given the Prussians time to finish their preparations and concentrate upon the Rhine undisturbed, six days later the Assembly declared La patrie est en danger. Banners were placed in the squares, bearing the words. That they devastate our fatherland through fire and murder, in a word, that they overcome you with chains dyed with the blood of those whom you hold the most dear. Citizens, the country is in danger. it is in the name of the King that liberty is being attacked, by this means he put the idea of deposing the King into the minds of the public. His speech, which made an impression, was circulated by the Assembly through all the departments. Evading the royal veto on a camp, the Assembly had invited National Guards from the provinces, on their way to the front, to come to Paris. These fédérés tended to have radical views than the deputies who had invited them

39.
September Massacres
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The September Massacres were a wave of killings in Paris and other cities in late summer 1792, during the French Revolution. There was a fear that foreign and royalist armies would attack Paris, radicals called for preemptive action, especially journalist Jean-Paul Marat, who called on draftees to kill the prisoners before they could be freed. The action was undertaken by mobs of National Guardsmen and some fédérés, it was tolerated by the city government, the Paris Commune, by 6 September, half the prison population of Paris had been summarily executed, some 1200 to 1400 prisoners. Of these,233 were nonjuring Catholic priests who refused to submit to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, however, the great majority of those killed were common criminals. The massacres were repeated in many other French cities, no one was prosecuted for the killings, but the political repercussions first injured the Girondists and later the Jacobins. The political situation in Paris on the eve of the September Massacres was highly excited and aroused by rumors of traitors. The next day the insurrectionists stormed the Tuileries Palace, the 48 sections of Paris were fully equipped with munitions from the plundered arsenals in the days before the assault, substituting for the 60 National Guard battalions. Now, supported by a new armed force, the Commune and its sans-culottes took control of the city and dominated the Legislative Assembly, for some weeks the Commune functioned as the actual government of France. These events meant a change of direction from the political and constitutional perspective of the Girondists to a more social approach given by the Commune, besides these measures, the Commune engaged in a policy of political repression of all suspected counter-revolutionary activities. Beginning on 11 August, every Paris section named its committee of vigilance, mostly these decentralized committees, rather than the Commune, brought about the repression of August and September 1792. From 15 to 25 August, around 500 detentions were registered, half the detentions were made against non-juring priests, but even priests who had sworn the required oath were caught in the wave. In Paris, all monasteries were closed and the rest of the orders were dissolved by the law of 15 August. On 2 September, news reached Paris that the Duke of Brunswicks Prussian army had invaded France and he was advancing quickly toward the capital. On 1 August, Brunswick had issued the Brunswick Manifesto, additionally, the Manifesto threatened the French population with instant punishment should it resist the Imperial and Prussian armies, or the reinstatement of the monarchy. Such information fueled this first wave of mob hysteria of the Revolution, by the end of August, rumors circulated that many in Paris – such as non-juring priests – who opposed the Revolution, would support the First Coalition of foreign powers allied against it. Furthermore, Paris lacked extensive food stocks, when news that Brunswick had captured Verdun reached the Convention, they ordered the alarm guns fired, which escalated the sense of panic. Of 284 prisoners,135 were killed,27 were transferred,86 were set free, in the afternoon of 2 September 150 priests in the convent of Carmelites were massacred, mostly by sans-culottes. On 3 and 4 September, groups broke into other Paris prisons, where they murdered the prisoners, from 2 to 7 September, summary trials took place in all Paris prisons

September Massacres
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The September Massacres
September Massacres
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Mass killing of prisoners that took place in Paris

40.
National Convention
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The National Convention was the third government of the French Revolution, following the two-year National Constituent Assembly and the one-year Legislative Assembly. Created after the insurrection of 10 August 1792, it was the first French government organized as a republic. The Convention sat as an assembly from 20 September 1792 to 26 October 1795. The National Convention was therefore the first French assembly elected by a suffrage without distinctions of class, although the Convention lasted until 1795, power was effectively stripped from the elected deputies and concentrated in the small Committee of Public Safety from April 1793. After the fall of Robespierre, the Convention lasted for year until a new constitution was written. The election took place from 2 to 6 September 1792 after the election of the colleges by primary assemblies on 26 August. Therefore, the increased suffrage had very little impact, the electorate returned the same sort of men that the active citizens had chosen in 1791. In the whole of France, only eleven primary assemblies wanted to retain the monarchy, of the electoral assemblies, all tacitly voted for a republic – though only Paris used the word. None of the deputies stood as a royalist for elections, out of the five million Frenchmen able to vote, only a million showed up at the polls. The Salle des Machines had galleries for the public who often influenced the debates with interruptions or applause, the members of the Convention came from all classes of society, but the most numerous were lawyers. 75 members had sat in the National Constituent Assembly,183 in the Legislative Assembly, the full number of deputies was 749, not counting 33 from the French colonies, of whom only some arrived in Paris in time. Besides these, however, the newly formed départements annexed to France from 1792 to 1795 were allowed to send deputations, according to its own ruling, the Convention elected its President every fortnight, and the outgoing President was eligible for re-election after the lapse of a fortnight. Ordinarily the sessions were held in the morning, but evening sessions also occurred frequently, sometimes in exceptional circumstances the Convention declared itself in permanent session and sat for several days without interruption. For both legislative and administrative the Convention used committees, with more or less widely extended and regulated by successive laws. The most famous of these included the Committee of Public Safety. The Convention held legislative and executive powers during the first years of the French First Republic and had three periods, Girondin, Montagnard or Jacobin, and Thermidorian. The abolition of the royalty is a matter you cannot put off till tomorrow, the first session was held on 20 September 1792. The following day, amidst profound silence, the proposition was put to the assembly, on the 22nd came the news of the Battle of Valmy

41.
Execution of Louis XVI
–
The execution of Louis XVI, by means of the guillotine, took place on 21 January 1793 at the Place de la Révolution in Paris. It was an event of the Revolution. He was convicted in a vote and condemned to death by a large majority. He heard his last Mass, served by Cléry, and received Communion, the Mass requisites were provided by special direction of the authorities. Upon Father Edgeworths advice he avoided a last farewell scene with his family, at 7 oclock he confided his last wishes to the priest. His Royal seal was to go to the Dauphin and his ring to the Queen. After receiving the blessing he went to meet Antoine Joseph Santerre. A green carriage was waiting in the second court and he seated himself in it with the priest, with two militiamen sitting opposite them. The carriage left the Temple at approximately 9 oclock, in the neighbourhood of the present rue de Cléry, the Baron de Batz, a supporter of the Royal family who had financed the flight to Varennes, had summoned 300 Royalists to enable the Kings escape. Louis was to be hidden in a house in the rue de Cléry belonging to the Count of Marsan, the Baron leaped forward calling Follow me, my friends, let us save the King. But his associates had been denounced and only a few had been able to turn up, three of them were killed, but de Batz managed to escape. The 13 February issue of the Thermomètre du jour, a moderate Republican newspaper, citing as its source the executioner, Charles Henri Sanson. Charles Sanson responded to the story by offering his own version of events in a letter dated 20 February 1793, I remain strongly convinced that he derived this firmness from the principles of the religion by which he seemed penetrated and persuaded as no other man. In his Causeries, Alexandre Dumas refers to a meeting circa 1830 with Henri Sanson, eldest son of Charles Sanson, now then, you were saying you wanted something, Monsieur Dumas. You know how much playwrights need accurate information, Monsieur Sanson, the moment may come for me to put Louis XVI on the stage. How much truth is there in the story of the bout between him and your fathers assistants at the foot of the scaffold. Oh, I can tell you that, Monsieur. I know, thats why it is you Im asking. Well listen, the King had been driven to the scaffold in his own carriage and his hands were free. So one assistant waited with a rope, while another said to him It is necessary to tie your hands, on hearing these unexpected words, at the unexpected sight of that rope, Louis XVI made an involuntary gesture of repulsion

Execution of Louis XVI
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"Day of 21 January 1793 the death of Louis Capet on the Place de la Révolution " – French engraving.
Execution of Louis XVI
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"The Death of Louis XVI King of France" from an English engraving, published 1798.

42.
Jean-Paul Marat
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Jean-Paul Marat was a French political theorist, physician, and scientist who became best known for his role as a radical journalist and politician during the French Revolution. He was one of the most radical voices of the French Revolution, Marat was assassinated by Charlotte Corday, a Girondist sympathizer, while taking a medicinal bath for his debilitating skin condition. In his death, Marat became an icon to the Jacobins as a martyr, as portrayed in Jacques-Louis Davids famous painting. For this assassination, Corday was executed four days later, on 17 July 1793, Jean-Paul Marat was born in Boudry in the Prussian Principality of Neuchâtel, now part of Switzerland, on 24 May 1743. He was the second of nine born to Jean Mara, a native of Cagliari, Sardinia, and Louise Cabrol. His father was a Mercedarian commendator and religious refugee who converted to Calvinism in Geneva, at the age of sixteen, Marat left home in search of new opportunities, aware of the limited opportunities for outsiders. His highly educated father had turned down for several college teaching posts. His first stop was with the wealthy Nairac family in Bordeaux, after two years there he moved on to Paris where he studied medicine without gaining any formal qualifications. Highly ambitious, but without patronage or qualifications, he set about inserting himself into the scene with works on philosophy. Around 1770, Marat moved to Newcastle upon Tyne and he gave it the subtitle, A work in which the clandestine and villainous attempts of Princes to ruin Liberty are pointed out, and the dreadful scenes of Despotism disclosed. It earned him membership of the patriotic societies of Berwick-upon-Tweed. The Newcastle Literary and Philosophical Society Library possesses a copy, and Tyne, a published essay on curing a friend of gleets probably helped to secure his medical referees for an MD from the University of St Andrews in June 1775. On his return to London, he published Enquiry into the Nature, Cause, in 1776, Marat moved to Paris following a brief stopover in Geneva to visit his family. The position paid 2,000 livres a year plus allowances, Marat was soon in great demand as a court doctor among the aristocracy and he used his new-found wealth to set up a laboratory in the marquise de lAubespines house. Soon he was publishing works on fire and heat, electricity and he published, first, a summary of his scientific views and discoveries in Découvertes de M. Marat sur le feu, lélectricité et la lumière in 1779. He then went on to publish three much more detailed and extensive works, expanding on each of his areas of research. His method was to describe in detail the meticulous series of experiments he had undertaken on a problem, seeking to explore and then all possible conclusions. This describes 166 experiments conducted to demonstrate that fire was not, as was widely held and he asked the Academy of Sciences to appraise his work, and it appointed a commission to do so, which reported in April 1779

Jean-Paul Marat
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Jean-Paul Marat
Jean-Paul Marat
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"Marat's Triumph": a popular engraving of Marat borne away by a joyous crowd following his acquittal.
Jean-Paul Marat
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The Death of Marat by Jacques-Louis David (1793)

43.
The Death of Marat
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The Death of Marat is a painting by Jacques-Louis David of the murdered French revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat. It is one of the most famous images of the French Revolution, David was the leading French painter, as well as a Montagnard and a member of the revolutionary Committee of General Security. The painting shows the radical journalist lying dead in his bath on 13 July 1793 after his murder by Charlotte Corday. Painted in the months after Marats murder, it has described by T. J. Clark as the first modernist painting, for the way it took the stuff of politics as its material. Marat was one of the leaders of the Montagnards, the radical faction ascendant in French politics during the Reign of Terror until the Thermidorian Reaction, Charlotte Corday was a Girondin from a minor aristocratic family and a political enemy of Marat who blamed him for the September Massacre. She gained entrance to Marats rooms with a note promising details of a ring in Caen. Marat suffered from a condition that caused him to spend much of his time in his bathtub. Corday fatally stabbed Marat, though she did not attempt to flee and she was later tried and executed for the murder. As well as being the leading French painter of his generation, David was a prominent Montagnard, and he was also on the Committee of Public Instruction. For example, the painting contains no sign of his problems, his skin appears clean. David, however, drew other details from his visit to Marats residence the day before the assassination, the rug, the papers. David promised his peers in the National Convention that he would later depict their murdered friend invocatively as écrivant pour le bonheur du peuple, the Death of Marat is designed to commemorate a personable hero. Although the name Charlotte Corday can be seen on the held in Marats left hand. Close inspection of this painting shows Marat at his last breath, therefore, David intended to record more than just the horror of martyrdom. The Death of Marat has often compared to Michelangelos Pietà. Note the elongated arm hanging down in both works, David admired Caravaggios works, especially Entombment of Christ, which mirrors The Death of Marats drama and light. David sought to transfer the sacred qualities long associated with the monarchy and he painted Marat, martyr of the Revolution, in a style reminiscent of a Christian martyr, with the face and body bathed in a soft, glowing light. As Christian art had done from its beginning, David also played with multileveled references to classical art, widely admired during the Terror whose leaders ordered several copies of the original work, The Death of Marat slowly ceased to be frontpage history after Robespierres overthrow and execution

The Death of Marat
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La Mort de Marat
The Death of Marat
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Detail of The Death of Marat showing the paper held in Marat's left hand. The letter reads (in French) "Il suffit que je sois bien malheureuse pour avoir droit a votre bienveillance" or in English, "Given that I am unhappy, I have a right to your help"
The Death of Marat
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Charlotte Corday by Paul Jacques Aimé Baudry, painted 1860.
The Death of Marat
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One of two versions of Death of Marat made by Edvard Munch in 1907

44.
Marie Antoinette
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Marie Antoinette (/ˈmæriˌæntwəˈnɛt/, /ˌɑ̃ːntwə-/, /ˌɑ̃ːtwə-/, US /məˈriː-/, French, born Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna, was the last Queen of France and Navarre before the French Revolution. She was born an Archduchess of Austria, and was the fifteenth and second youngest child of Empress Maria Theresa and Francis I, in April 1770, upon her marriage to Louis-Auguste, heir apparent to the French throne, she became Dauphine of France. After eight years of marriage, Marie Antoinette gave birth to a daughter, Marie-Thérèse Charlotte, the Diamond Necklace affair damaged her reputation further. On 10 August 1792, the attack on the Tuileries forced the family to take refuge at the Assembly. On 21 September 1792, the monarchy was abolished, after a two-day trial begun on 14 October 1793, Marie Antoinette was convicted by the Revolutionary Tribunal of high treason, and executed by guillotine on Place de la Révolution on 16 October 1793. Maria Antonia was born on 2 November 1755, at the Hofburg Palace and she was the youngest daughter of Empress Maria Theresa, ruler of the Habsburg Empire, and her husband Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor. Her godparents were Joseph I and Mariana Victoria, King and Queen of Portugal, Archduke Joseph, shortly after her birth, she was placed under the care of the Governess of the Imperial children, Countess von Brandeis. Maria Antonia was raised with her older sister Maria Carolina. As to her relationship with her mother, it was difficult, despite the private tutoring she received, results of her schooling were less than satisfactory. At the age of ten she could not write correctly in German or in any language used at court, such as French. Under the teaching of Christoph Willibald Gluck, Maria Antonia developed into a good musician and she learned to play the harp, the harpsichord and the flute. During the familys gatherings in the evenings, she would sing and she also excelled at dancing, had an exquisite poise, and loved dolls. Following the Seven Years War and the Diplomatic Revolution of 1756, Empress Maria Theresa decided to end hostilities with her longtime enemy, on 14 May she met her husband at the edge of the forest of Compiègne. Upon her arrival in France, she adopted the French version of her name, a further ceremonial wedding took place on 16 May 1770 in the Palace of Versailles and, after the festivities, the day ended with the ritual bedding. The lack of consummation of the marriage plagued the reputation of both Louis-Auguste and Marie Antoinette for the seven years. The initial reaction to the marriage between Marie Antoinette and Louis-Auguste was mixed, on the one hand, the Dauphine was beautiful, personable and well-liked by the common people. Her first official appearance in Paris on 8 June 1773 was a resounding success, on the other hand, those opposed to the alliance with Austria, and others, for personal reasons, had a difficult relationship with Marie Antoinette. Madame du Barry, for example, was Louis XVs mistress and had political influence over him

45.
Georges Danton
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Georges Jacques Danton was a leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution, in particular as the first president of the Committee of Public Safety. He was guillotined by the advocates of revolutionary terror after accusations of venality, Danton was born in Arcis-sur-Aube in northeastern France to Jacques Danton and Mary Camus, a respectable, but not wealthy family. As a child, he was attacked by animals, resulting in the disfigurement and scarring of the skin on his face. After obtaining an education he became an Advocate in Paris. He married Antoinette Gabrielle Charpentier on 14 June 1787 at the church of Saint-Germain-lAuxerrois in Paris, Danton was considered a very mischievous boy. Due to this, he went to different schools, also, he had a very high natural IQ. As a result, he was bored and disinterested in his classes. His first teacher was his grandfather and he was able to pass his classes with little effort, when he was 9, he was sent to a boys school. This is where Danton learned Latin and he was later sent to a school in Troyes for a year due to his mother thinking that he hasnt given up his mischievous ways as a child. Later, he attended a boarding house taught by Oratorians until he was 17, here, he learned more Latin and about the Bible, mainly the Acts of the Apostles and about Christian beliefs. He didnt really take to them, however, as early as age 12, he had already acquired the skills to become a leader. He led fellow classmates to either rebel or riot and this showed his leadership skills and how much his classmates already respected him at such a young age. He also consistently questioned authority, which will be seen later during the French revolution when he openly disrespected and called out Lafayette as a traitor during a meeting. At a young age, he had amazing writing and speech skills, as later during a competition, he took all the prizes for French discourse, Latin narration. Was highly influenced by thinkers of the time, such as Montesquieu. Studied at Reim University where he became a lawyer, later become bored of the career and became an orator. Was seen as a man of the people by then because he pleaded for the poor. Both his classmates, teachers and grandfather revered him as a prodigy and his amazing writing and speaking skills later made people give him the nickname “The Thunderer”

Georges Danton
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Georges-Jacques Danton. Musée Carnavalet, Paris
Georges Danton
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Signature
Georges Danton
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According to a biographer, "Danton's height was colossal, his make athletic, his features strongly marked, coarse, and displeasing; his voice shook the domes of the halls".
Georges Danton
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Danton addressing the National Convention.

46.
Camille Desmoulins
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Lucie Simplice Camille Benoît Desmoulins, a journalist and politician, played an important role in the French Revolution. He was a friend of Maximilien Robespierre and a close friend and political ally of Georges Danton. Desmoulins was tried and executed alongside Danton when the Committee of Public Safety reacted against Dantonist opposition, Desmoulins was born at Guise, Aisne, in Picardy. His father, Jean Benoît Nicolas Desmoulins, was a rural lawyer, through the efforts of a friend, he obtained a scholarship for the fourteen-year-old Camille to enter the Collège Louis-le-Grand in Paris. Desmoulins proved an exceptional student even among such notable contemporaries as Maximilien Robespierre and he excelled in the study of Classical literature and politics, and gained a particular affinity for Cicero, Tacitus and Livy. Thus stymied, he turned towards writing as an outlet for his talents. In March 1789, Jean Benoît Nicolas Desmoulins was nominated as deputy to the Estates-General from the bailliage of Guise, however, due to illness, he failed to take his seat. Camille Desmoulins, himself limited to the role of spectator at the procession of the Estates-General on 5 May 1789, wrote a response to the event, Ode aux Etats Generaux. Owing to his difficulties in establishing a career as a lawyer, Desmoulins position in Paris was a precarious one, however, he was greatly inspired and enthused by the current of political reform that surrounded the summoning of the Estates-General. The sudden dismissal of popular finance minister Jacques Necker by King Louis XVI on 11 July 1789 proved the spark that lit the fuse of Desmoulins fame. On 12 July, spurred by the news of this politically unsettling dismissal, Desmoulins leapt onto a table outside the Cafe du Foy and delivered an impassioned call to arms. The stationing of a number of troops in Paris, many foreign, had led Desmoulins. This was an idea that his audience also found plausible and threatening, the cockades worn by the crowd were initially green, a color associated with liberty, and made at first from the leaves of the trees that lined the Palais Royal. The forces semi-organized under this banner attacked the Hôtel des Invalides to gain arms and, on 14 July, in May and June 1789, Desmoulins had written a radical pamphlet entitled La France Libre, which his publisher at that time had refused to print. The rioting surrounding the storming of the Bastille, however, and especially Desmoulins personal and publicized involvement in it, on 18 July, Desmoulinss work was finally issued. The politics of the pamphlet ran considerably in advance of public opinion, in it, Desmoulins called explicitly for a republic, popular and democratic government is the only constitution which suits France, and all those who are worthy of the name of men. La France Libre also examined and criticized in detail the role and rights of kings, of the nobility, a famous Revolutionary song, the Ça ira, also immortalizes this lantern, in the lines, Les aristocrates à la lanterne. This hard-edged fervor found an audience in Paris, and Desmoulins, as a result of the pamphlet

47.
Maximilien Robespierre
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Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre was a French lawyer and politician. He was one of the best-known and most influential figures associated with the French Revolution, as a member of the Estates-General, the Constituent Assembly and the Jacobin Club, Robespierre was an outspoken advocate for the poor and for democratic institutions. He campaigned for universal suffrage in France, price controls on basic food commodities. But although he was an ardent opponent of the penalty, he played an important role in arranging the execution of King Louis XVI. He is perhaps best known for his role in the French Revolutions Reign of Terror and he was named as a member of the powerful Committee of Public Safety launched by his political ally Georges Danton and exerted his influence to suppress the left-wing Hébertists. The Terror ended a few later with Robespierres arrest and execution in July. Robespierres personal responsibility for the excesses of the Terror remains the subject of debate among historians of the French Revolution. Influenced by 18th-century Enlightenment philosophes such as Rousseau and Montesquieu, Robespierre was a capable articulator of the beliefs of the left-wing bourgeoisie and his steadfast adherence and defense of the views he expressed earned him the nickname lIncorruptible. Robespierres reputation has gone through cycles of re-appraisal. During the Soviet Era, Robespierre was used as an example of a Revolutionary figure and his reputation peaked in the 1920s with the influence of French historian Albert Mathiez. In more recent times, his reputation has suffered as historians have associated him with an attempt at a radical purification of politics through the killing of enemies, Maximilien Robespierre was born in Arras in the old French province of Artois. His family has been traced back to the 12th century in Picardy and it has been suggested that he was of Irish descent, his surname possibly a corruption of Robert Speirs. His paternal grandfather, also named Maximilien de Robespierre, established himself in Arras as a lawyer and his father, François Maximilien Barthélémy de Robespierre, was a lawyer at the Conseil dArtois. He married Jacqueline Marguerite Carrault, the daughter of a brewer, Maximilien was the oldest of four children and was conceived out of wedlock. His siblings were Charlotte, Henriette, and Augustin, on 7 July 1764, Madame de Robespierre gave birth to a stillborn son, she died nine days later. Devastated by his wifes death, François de Robespierre subsequently left Arras, the children would visit each other on Sundays. Already literate at age 8, Maximilien started attending the collège of Arras, in October 1769, on the recommendation of the bishop, he received a scholarship at the Collège Louis-le-Grand, University of Paris in Paris. Robespierre studied there until age 23, receiving his training as a lawyer, upon his graduation, he received a special prize of 600-livre for twelve years of exemplary academic success and personal good conduct

48.
First White Terror
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The term White Terror describes a period of the French Revolution during which a wave of violent attacks swept across much of France in 1795. The victims of violence were people identified as being associated with the Reign of Terror - followers of Robespierre and Marat. In particular locations, there were more organised counter-revolutionary movements such as the Companions of Jehu in Lyon. The name White Terror derives from the white cockades worn in the hats of royalists, the Reign of Terror ended on 9 Thermidor Year II when Robespierre and his associates were overthrown. However there was not a reaction to his rule. In Paris, there were increasing attacks on sans-culottes by Muscadins, however only when a number of conditions changed did anti-Jacobin forces feel sufficiently confident to escalate these attacks into a full-scale White Terror. It took a period of months before all of the leading figures associated with the Reign of Terror were brought to trial or removed from power. Economically, there were food shortages as a result of a winter in 1794-5. The harvest of 1794 was poor, particularly in the areas which supplied Paris, further south, rivers remained iced over and roads remained impassible in the Spring, hindering trade and raising local prices. The assignat fell from 31% of its value in August 1794 to 24% in November, 17% in February. In Paris, hunger and desperation led to the Germinal uprising of April 1795, militarily, the National Convention was fighting the Chouannerie rebellion in western France until December 1794. 1 August 1794 - arrest of Jacobin Terrorist Fouquier-Tinville, the Convention repeals the Law of 22 Prairial 3 September 1794 - Arrest of Jean-Baptiste Carrier 8 September 1794 - The Revolutionary Tribunal begins to hear the case of the 94 Nantes Federalists. The accused made a powerful appeal to public opinion by recounting in horrific detail the Terror in their city under Carrier. This trial was critical in hardening public opinion against the Jacobins,16 October - The Convention bans any correspondence and affiliations between clubs, effectively outlawing the nationwide network of Jacobin clubs. 17 October 1794 - The trial of the 94 Nantais ends with their acquittal, the Convention imposes martial law in Paris and decides that the arrested Jacobins Barère, Billaud-Varenne, Vadier and Collot-dHerbois should be deported to Guyana without a trial. 5 April 1795 - the Convention issues arrest warrants for a number of left-wing deputies, including Cambon, Levasseur de la Sarthe, Thuriot and Lecointre. August–October 1794 - newly freed press allows right-wing papers in Paris to call for revenge on the Jacobins, gave instructions for action and pointed out prominent Terrorist targets. In the provinces, Thermidorean représentants en mission opened the prisons and stirred up calls for revenge on Jacobins - Boisset at Bourg, Goupilleau at Avignon and Auguis and they broke up local Jacobin committees and imprisoned many associated with them

First White Terror
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Massacre of Republican prisoners in Lyon in 1795

49.
Jacobin
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Initially founded by anti-Royalist deputies from Brittany, the Club grew into a nationwide republican movement, with a membership estimated at a half million or more. The Jacobin Club was heterogeneous and included both prominent parliamentary factions of the early 1790s, the radical Mountain and the more moderate Girondins, in 1792–93, the Girondins dominated the Jacobin Club and led the country. Believing that revolutionary France would not be accepted by its neighbours, they called for a foreign policy. The Girondins were the dominant faction when the Jacobins overthrew the monarchy, when the Republic failed to deliver the unrealistic gains that had been expected, they lost popularity. The Girondins sought to curb fanatical revolutionary violence, and were accused by the Mountain of being royalist sympathisers. The National Guard eventually switched its support from the Girondins to the Mountain, in May 1793, led by Maximilien de Robespierre, the leaders of the Mountain faction succeeded in sidelining the Girondin faction and controlled the government until July 1794. Their time in government was characterized by radically progressive legislation imposed with very high levels of political violence, in June 1793, they approved the Constitution of Year 1 which introduced universal male suffrage for the first time in history. In September 1793, twenty-one prominent Girondins were guillotined, beginning the Reign of Terror, in October, during the Terror, the new constitution was ratified in a referendum which most eligible voters avoided participating in. In 1794, the Thermidorian Reaction pushed the Mountain out of power, the Jacobin Club was closed and many of its leaders, including Robespierre, were executed. Today, Jacobin and Jacobinism are used in a variety of senses and it was so named because of the Dominican convent where they met, which had recently been located in the Rue St. Jacques, Paris. The club originated as the Club Breton, formed at Versailles from a group of Breton representatives attending the Estates-General of 1789, when the Estates-General was convened in 1789, at Versailles, the club was initially composed exclusively of deputies from Brittany. However, they were joined by deputies from other regions throughout France. At this time, meetings occurred in secret, and few traces remain concerning what took place or where the meetings were convened. By the March on Versailles in October 1789, the club, the group rented for its meetings the refectory of the monastery of the Jacobins in the Rue Saint-Honoré, adjacent to the seat of the Assembly. The name Jacobins, given in France to the Dominicans, was first applied to the club in ridicule by its enemies and it occupied successively the refectory, the library, and the chapel of the monastery. Once in Paris, the club underwent rapid modifications, the first great change was its extension of membership to others besides deputies. All citizens were allowed to enter and even foreigners were welcomed, Jacobin Club meetings soon became a place for radical and rousing oratory that pushed for republicanism, widespread education, universal suffrage, separation of church and state, and other reforms. At the same time the rules of order of election were settled, by the 7th article the club decided to admit as associates similar societies in other parts of France and to maintain with them a regular correspondence

Jacobin
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Seal of the Jacobin Club, 1789–1792.
Jacobin
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The door of the Jacobin Club was in the Rue Saint-Honoré, Paris.
Jacobin
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Engraving "Closing of the Jacobin Club, during the night of 27–28 July 1794, or 9–10 Thermidor, year 2 of the Republic"

50.
Constitution of the Year III
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The Constitution of the Year III is the constitution that founded the Directory. It remained in effect until the coup of 18 Brumaire effectively ended the Revolution and it was more conservative than the abortive democratic French Constitution of 1793. The central government retained power, including emergency powers to curb freedom of the press. The Declaration of Rights and Duties of Mankind at the beginning of the constitution included a ban on slavery. It was succeeded by the Constitution of the Year VIII, which established the Consulate